Maryland State Wire

There were 24 deaths with chronic lower respiratory disease listed as the underlying cause reported in Maryland during the week ending April 30, 2022, a 33.3% decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending April 30, 2022, there were 672 deaths in the state. 21.4% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 22.5% were from cancer and 4.3% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 8.6% 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 April 30, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending April 23, 2022
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	151	169
Heart disease	144	164
Cerebrovascular diseases	41	62
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	24	36
Diabetes mellitus	22	25
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	18	25
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	11	14
Influenza and pneumonia	10	12
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	10	10
Alzheimer's disease	10	20

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending April 30, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending April 23, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	58	77