Palmetto State News

There were 39 deaths with chronic lower respiratory disease listed as the underlying cause reported in South Carolina during the week ending March 19, 2022, a 17% decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending March 19, 2022, there were 741 deaths in the state. 20.2% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 16.2% were from cancer and 7% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 11.1% 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 March 19, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending March 12, 2022
Heart disease	150	156
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	120	156
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	39	47
Cerebrovascular diseases	37	29
Alzheimer's disease	33	38
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	31	64
Diabetes mellitus	24	21
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	21	46
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	19	10
Influenza and pneumonia	10	11

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending March 19, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending March 12, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	82	83