Maryland State Wire

There were 24 deaths with COVID-19 listed as the underlying cause reported in Maryland during the week ending Aug. 6, 2022, a 27.3% decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Aug. 6, 2022, there were 954 deaths in the state. 20.1% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 22.2% were from cancer and 7% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 8% 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 Aug. 6, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending July 30, 2022
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	212	213
Heart disease	192	222
Cerebrovascular diseases	58	55
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	43	51
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	36	31
Diabetes mellitus	32	24
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	24	33
Alzheimer's disease	19	21
Influenza and pneumonia	13	< 10
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	11	16

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending Aug. 6, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending July 30, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	76	79