Palmetto State News

There were 172 deaths with heart disease listed as the underlying cause reported in South Carolina during the week ending April 9, 2022, a 1.7% decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending April 9, 2022, there were 721 deaths in the state. 23.9% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 17.3% were from cancer and 1.7% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 12.5% 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 April 9, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending April 2, 2022
Heart disease	172	175
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	125	117
Alzheimer's disease	38	38
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	37	29
Cerebrovascular diseases	31	41
Diabetes mellitus	25	15
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	14	13
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	12	14
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	< 10
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	< 10	< 10

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending April 9, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending April 2, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	90	78