Beehive State News

There were less than 10 deaths with COVID-19 listed as the underlying cause reported in Utah in the week ending Nov. 5, making up less than 2.5% of total deaths by all causes in Utah, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Nov. 5, there were 396 deaths in the state. 23% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 14.4% were from cancer and 2.5% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 11.1% 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	91	23
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	57	14.4
Cerebrovascular diseases	20	5.1
Alzheimer's disease	18	4.5
Diabetes mellitus	10	2.5
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	10	2.5
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	< 2.5
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	< 10	< 2.5
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	< 10	< 2.5
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	< 10	< 2.5

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths	% of Total Deaths
Alzheimer disease and dementia	44	11.1