Minnesota State Wire

There were 25 deaths with COVID-19 listed as the underlying cause reported in Minnesota during the week ending Sept. 17, 2022, a 13.8% decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Sept. 17, 2022, there were 868 deaths in the state. 18.2% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 22.7% were from cancer and 7.9% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 11.5% 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. 17, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Sept. 10, 2022
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	197	201
Heart disease	158	176
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	44	43
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	42	38
Cerebrovascular diseases	40	43
Alzheimer's disease	39	48
Diabetes mellitus	34	24
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	25	29
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	11	14
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	< 10

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending Sept. 17, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Sept. 10, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	100	102