Hoosier State Today

There were 38 deaths with chronic lower respiratory disease listed as the underlying cause reported in Indiana during the week ending April 23, 2022, a 35.7% increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending April 23, 2022, there were 719 deaths in the state. 21.3% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 18.9% were from cancer and 4.2% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 12.2% 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 23, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending April 16, 2022
Heart disease	153	107
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	136	89
Cerebrovascular diseases	43	23
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	38	28
Diabetes mellitus	34	16
Alzheimer's disease	25	15
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	19	< 10
Influenza and pneumonia	15	< 10
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	14	13
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	11	< 10

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending April 23, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending April 16, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	88	48