Maryland State Wire

There were 31 deaths with diabetes mellitus listed as the underlying cause reported in Maryland during the week ending May 29, 2021, a 19.2% increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending May 29, 2021, there were 1,019 deaths in the state. 20.4% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 20.8% were from cancer and 11.3% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 7.7% 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 May 29, 2021	Deaths in Week Ending May 22, 2021
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	212	196
Heart disease	208	221
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	63	82
Cerebrovascular diseases	60	53
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	52	69
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	39	29
Diabetes mellitus	31	26
Alzheimer's disease	21	22
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	19	< 10
Influenza and pneumonia	10	< 10

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending May 29, 2021	Deaths in Week Ending May 22, 2021
Alzheimer disease and dementia	78	75