Palmetto State News

There were 45 deaths with chronic lower respiratory disease listed as the underlying cause reported in South Carolina during the week ending June 18, 2022, a 11.8% decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending June 18, 2022, there were 842 deaths in the state. 19.8% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 21.4% were from cancer and 5.1% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 8.9% 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 18, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending June 11, 2022
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	180	195
Heart disease	167	203
Cerebrovascular diseases	46	56
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	45	51
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	30	26
Alzheimer's disease	29	38
Diabetes mellitus	26	39
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	14	15
Influenza and pneumonia	13	< 10
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	13	17

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending June 18, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending June 11, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	75	93