Palmetto State News

There were 40 deaths with Alzheimer's disease listed as the underlying cause reported in South Carolina during the week ending June 25, 2022, a 37.9% increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending June 25, 2022, there were 728 deaths in the state. 19.9% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 20.1% were from cancer and 5.4% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 11.8% 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 25, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending June 18, 2022
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	146	180
Heart disease	145	167
Cerebrovascular diseases	44	46
Alzheimer's disease	40	29
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	37	45
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	25	30
Diabetes mellitus	18	26
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	14	13
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	13	14
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	13

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending June 25, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending June 18, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	86	75