Gem State Wire

There were 20 deaths with Alzheimer's disease listed as the underlying cause reported in Idaho during the week ending October 9, a 25 percent increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending October 9, there were 495 deaths in the state. 11.5 percent of deaths were caused by heart disease, 11.1 percent were from cancer and 67.5 percent were from COVID-19. Additionally, 7.1 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 2021-10-09	Number of Deaths 2021-10-02
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	173	189
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	161	176
Heart disease	57	65
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	55	62
Alzheimer's disease	20	16
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	20	20
Cerebrovascular diseases	17	15
Diabetes mellitus	14	11
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	< 10
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	< 10	< 10

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths 2021-10-09	Number of Deaths 2021-10-02
Alzheimer disease and dementia	35	36