Palmetto State News

There were 14 deaths with COVID-19 listed as a contributing cause reported in South Carolina during the week ending June 17, a 40% increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending June 17, there were 1,060 deaths in the state. 20.2% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 18.4% were from cancer and 1.3% 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 June 17	Deaths in Week Ending June 10
Heart disease	214	219
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	195	200
Cerebrovascular diseases	61	43
Alzheimer's disease	55	51
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	38	44
Diabetes mellitus	28	33
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	20	22
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	14	10
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	15
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	< 10	< 10

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending June 17	Deaths in Week Ending June 10
Alzheimer disease and dementia	133	114