Hoosier State Today

There were 35 deaths with Alzheimer's disease listed as the underlying cause reported in Indiana during the week ending Nov. 12, 2022, a 16.7% decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Nov. 12, 2022, there were 1,297 deaths in the state. 22.5% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 20.2% were from cancer and 7.5% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 9.9% 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 Nov. 12, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Nov. 5, 2022
Heart disease	292	295
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	262	260
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	81	103
Cerebrovascular diseases	66	63
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	53	59
Diabetes mellitus	49	44
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	44	41
Alzheimer's disease	35	42
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	18	23
Influenza and pneumonia	17	15

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending Nov. 12, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Nov. 5, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	129	134