Maryland State Wire

There were 32 deaths with chronic lower respiratory disease listed as the underlying cause reported in Maryland during the week ending Jan. 15, a 28 percent increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Jan. 15, there were 1,107 deaths in the state. 17.6 percent of deaths were caused by heart disease, 12.6 percent were from cancer and 59.3 percent were from COVID-19. Additionally, 8.9 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 2022-01-15	Number of Deaths 2022-01-08
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	348	285
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	308	250
Heart disease	195	205
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	140	148
Cerebrovascular diseases	44	45
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	32	25
Diabetes mellitus	25	29
Alzheimer's disease	20	26
Influenza and pneumonia	10	12
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	< 10	< 10

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths 2022-01-15	Number of Deaths 2022-01-08
Alzheimer disease and dementia	98	100