Maryland State Wire

There were 53 deaths with COVID-19 listed as a contributing cause reported in Maryland during the week ending Aug. 27, 2022, a 17.8% increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Aug. 27, 2022, there were 950 deaths in the state. 18.6% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 23.4% were from cancer and 9.4% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 9.6% 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 Aug. 27, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Aug. 20, 2022
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	222	207
Heart disease	177	212
Cerebrovascular diseases	54	59
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	53	45
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	36	34
Alzheimer's disease	25	20
Diabetes mellitus	23	19
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	23	36
Influenza and pneumonia	13	< 10
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	< 10	13

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending Aug. 27, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Aug. 20, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	91	81