Minnesota State Wire

There were 32 deaths with COVID-19 listed as the underlying cause reported in Minnesota in the week ending Dec. 17, making up 3.6% of total deaths by all causes in Minnesota, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Dec. 17, there were 884 deaths in the state. 19.7% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 19.8% were from cancer and 8.5% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 14.6% 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	% of Total Deaths
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	175	19.8
Heart disease	174	19.7
Alzheimer's disease	54	6.1
Cerebrovascular diseases	44	5
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	43	4.9
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	43	4.9
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	32	3.6
Diabetes mellitus	29	3.3
Influenza and pneumonia	23	2.6
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	15	1.7

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths	% of Total Deaths
Alzheimer disease and dementia	129	14.6