Palmetto State News

There were 47 deaths with chronic lower respiratory disease listed as the underlying cause reported in South Carolina during the week ending July 9, 2022, a 30.6% increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending July 9, 2022, there were 907 deaths in the state. 19.1% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 19.5% were from cancer and 6.2% 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 July 9, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending July 2, 2022
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	177	157
Heart disease	173	170
Cerebrovascular diseases	51	53
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	47	36
Alzheimer's disease	42	44
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	31	33
Diabetes mellitus	25	14
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	25	18
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	12	15
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	< 10

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending July 9, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending July 2, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	101	95