Minnesota State Wire

There were 34 deaths from cerebrovascular diseases reported in Minnesota in the week ending Jan. 15, making up 4.8 percent of total deaths by all causes in Minnesota, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Jan. 15, there were 708 deaths in the state. 16.8 percent of deaths were caused by heart disease, 20.9 percent were from cancer and 29.7 percent were from COVID-19.

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	Cause of Death	% of Total Deaths
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	148	20.9
Heart disease	119	16.8
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	117	16.5
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	93	13.1
Alzheimer's disease	41	5.8
Cerebrovascular diseases	34	4.8
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	33	4.7
Diabetes mellitus	16	2.3
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	< 1.4
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	< 10	< 1.4