Minnesota State Wire

There were 239 deaths with COVID-19 listed as a contributing cause reported in Minnesota during the week ending November 27, a 7.7 percent increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending November 27, there were 1,139 deaths in the state. 16.1 percent of deaths were caused by heart disease, 17.9 percent were from cancer and 40.1 percent were from COVID-19. Additionally, 10.9 percent 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	Number of Deaths 2021-11-27	Number of Deaths 2021-11-20
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	239	222
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	218	198
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	204	201
Heart disease	183	172
Alzheimer's disease	54	59
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	43	48
Diabetes mellitus	35	43
Cerebrovascular diseases	33	45
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	10	12
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	< 10

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths 2021-11-27	Number of Deaths 2021-11-20
Alzheimer disease and dementia	124	141