Hawkeye Reporter

There were 45 deaths with chronic lower respiratory disease listed as the underlying cause reported in Iowa during the week ending June 11, 2022, a 32.4% increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending June 11, 2022, there were 507 deaths in the state. 25.2% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 23.9% were from cancer and 5.9% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 11% 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 11, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending June 4, 2022
Heart disease	128	127
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	121	108
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	45	34
Alzheimer's disease	20	20
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	19	18
Cerebrovascular diseases	18	34
Diabetes mellitus	14	21
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	11	11
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	11
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	< 10	12

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending June 11, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending June 4, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	56	51