Garden State Times

There were 41 deaths with Alzheimer's disease listed as the underlying cause reported in New Jersey during the week ending Aug. 27, 2022, a 5.1% increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Aug. 27, 2022, there were 1,392 deaths in the state. 21.1% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 22% were from cancer and 6.7% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 8.3% 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)	306	288
Heart disease	294	290
Cerebrovascular diseases	63	70
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	54	56
Alzheimer's disease	41	39
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	39	40
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	38	37
Diabetes mellitus	34	25
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	27	33
Influenza and pneumonia	12	14

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending Aug. 27, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Aug. 20, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	116	126