Great Lakes Wire

There were 59 deaths with diabetes mellitus listed as the underlying cause reported in Michigan during the week ending Oct. 8, 2022, a 16.9% decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Oct. 8, 2022, there were 1,977 deaths in the state. 26.6% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 20.4% were from cancer and 7.5% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 7.9% of deaths were from Alzheimer's disease and dementia.

Studies show doctors and medical examiners may underreport Alzheimer's disease and dementia-related conditions as the underlying cause of death on death certificates, according to the National Institute on Aging.

Once infected, older adults with dementia are likely to develop a more severe and dangerous illness. The diseases which make an older adult more vulnerable to COVID-19 are age-associated chronic conditions, according to the Bright Focus Foundation.

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending Oct. 8, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Oct. 1, 2022
Heart disease	526	507
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	404	384
Cerebrovascular diseases	105	94
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	90	85
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	89	112
Alzheimer's disease	76	72
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	60	73
Diabetes mellitus	59	71
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	31	31
Influenza and pneumonia	22	20

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending Oct. 8, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Oct. 1, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	157	164