Hawkeye Reporter

There were 22 deaths with COVID-19 listed as the underlying cause reported in Iowa during the week ending Aug. 13, 2022, no changes from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Aug. 13, 2022, there were 496 deaths in the state. 27.4% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 22.2% were from cancer and 11.1% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 9.3% 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 Aug. 13, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Aug. 6, 2022
Heart disease	136	127
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	110	110
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	33	31
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	25	36
Diabetes mellitus	22	15
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	22	22
Cerebrovascular diseases	18	22
Alzheimer's disease	17	22
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	< 10
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	< 10	12

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending Aug. 13, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Aug. 6, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	46	50