Hawkeye Reporter

There were 22 deaths with Alzheimer's disease listed as the underlying cause reported in Iowa during the week ending June 17, a 4.8% increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending June 17, there were 545 deaths in the state. 22% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 22.6% were from cancer and less than 1.8% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 9.5% 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
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	123	113
Heart disease	120	135
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	24	38
Alzheimer's disease	22	21
Cerebrovascular diseases	20	25
Diabetes mellitus	17	22
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	13	10
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	< 10
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	< 10	< 10
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	< 10	< 10

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending June 17	Deaths in Week Ending June 10
Alzheimer disease and dementia	52	58