Maryland State Wire

There were 35 deaths with chronic lower respiratory disease listed as the underlying cause reported in Maryland during the week ending June 18, 2022, a 2.8% decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending June 18, 2022, there were 834 deaths in the state. 23.1% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 22.1% were from cancer and 7.1% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 9.7% 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 June 18, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending June 11, 2022
Heart disease	193	207
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	184	183
Cerebrovascular diseases	56	50
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	36	42
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	35	36
Alzheimer's disease	28	19
Diabetes mellitus	23	29
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	23	26
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	18	< 10
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	< 10

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending June 18, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending June 11, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	81	74