Hawkeye Reporter

There were 21 deaths with COVID-19 listed as a contributing cause reported in Iowa during the week ending Sept. 24, 2022, a 27.6% decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Sept. 24, 2022, there were 595 deaths in the state. 24.7% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 20.2% were from cancer and 5.7% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 10.4% 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 Sept. 24, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Sept. 17, 2022
Heart disease	147	143
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	120	114
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	32	25
Alzheimer's disease	29	24
Cerebrovascular diseases	24	13
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	21	29
Diabetes mellitus	20	16
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	13	18
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	10	< 10
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	< 10

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending Sept. 24, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Sept. 17, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	62	70