Hawkeye Reporter

There were 15 deaths with COVID-19 listed as a contributing cause reported in Iowa during the week ending Oct. 15, 2022, a 44.4% decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Oct. 15, 2022, there were 642 deaths in the state. 24.3% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 19.5% were from cancer and 3.9% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 10.3% 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 Oct. 15, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Oct. 8, 2022
Heart disease	156	112
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	125	131
Alzheimer's disease	34	22
Cerebrovascular diseases	27	25
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	23	31
Diabetes mellitus	20	24
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	15	27
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	10	24
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	< 10
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	< 10	10

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending Oct. 15, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Oct. 8, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	66	60