Beehive State News

There were less than 10 deaths with COVID-19 listed as the underlying cause reported in Utah during the week ending Sept. 24, 2022, a decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Sept. 24, 2022, there were 408 deaths in the state. 19.9% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 20.1% were from cancer and less than 2.5% 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 Sept. 24, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Sept. 17, 2022
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	82	76
Heart disease	81	85
Cerebrovascular diseases	23	18
Alzheimer's disease	19	21
Diabetes mellitus	18	16
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	16	20
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	< 10
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	< 10	< 10
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	< 10	10
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	< 10	13

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending Sept. 24, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Sept. 17, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	39	51