Great Lakes Wire

There were 23 deaths with influenza and pneumonia listed as the underlying cause reported in Michigan during the week ending June 17, a 4.5% increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending June 17, there were 1,882 deaths in the state. 26.2% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 21.6% were from cancer and 0.6% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 7.6% 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 June 17	Deaths in Week Ending June 10
Heart disease	494	434
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	406	378
Cerebrovascular diseases	97	95
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	94	108
Alzheimer's disease	67	71
Diabetes mellitus	57	45
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	34	33
Influenza and pneumonia	23	22
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	11	15
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	< 10	< 10

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending June 17	Deaths in Week Ending June 10
Alzheimer disease and dementia	143	140