Garden State Times

There were 51 deaths from Alzheimer's disease reported in New Jersey in the week ending Dec. 3, making up 3.2% of total deaths by all causes in New Jersey, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Dec. 3, there were 1,598 deaths in the state. 21.2% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 19.3% were from cancer and 5.1% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 9.2% 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	Number of Deaths	% of Total Deaths
Heart disease	339	21.2
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	308	19.3
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	77	4.8
Cerebrovascular diseases	69	4.3
Alzheimer's disease	51	3.2
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	51	3.2
Diabetes mellitus	42	2.6
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	37	2.3
Influenza and pneumonia	35	2.2
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	30	1.9

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths	% of Total Deaths
Alzheimer disease and dementia	147	9.2