Hoosier State Today

There were 75 deaths with chronic lower respiratory disease listed as the underlying cause reported in Indiana during the week ending Sept. 24, 2022, a 10.7% decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Sept. 24, 2022, there were 1,341 deaths in the state. 20.2% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 20.2% were from cancer and 7.7% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 10.1% 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 Sept. 24, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Sept. 17, 2022
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	271	281
Heart disease	271	288
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	75	84
Cerebrovascular diseases	65	65
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	62	54
Diabetes mellitus	45	48
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	41	38
Alzheimer's disease	38	37
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	34	37
Influenza and pneumonia	12	< 10

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending Sept. 24, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Sept. 17, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	135	145