Maryland State Wire

There were less than 10 deaths from influenza and pneumonia reported in Maryland in the week ending Sept. 17, making up less than 1.4% of total deaths by all causes in Maryland, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Sept. 17, there were 704 deaths in the state. 21.2% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 23.3% were from cancer and 9.7% 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	Number of Deaths	% of Total Deaths
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	164	23.3
Heart disease	149	21.2
Cerebrovascular diseases	45	6.4
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	41	5.8
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	29	4.1
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	27	3.8
Diabetes mellitus	20	2.8
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	19	2.7
Alzheimer's disease	15	2.1
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	< 1.4