Bay State News

There were 43 deaths with chronic lower respiratory disease listed as the underlying cause reported in Massachusetts during the week ending Nov. 12, 2022, a 7.5% increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Nov. 12, 2022, there were 1,188 deaths in the state. 18.3% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 20.9% were from cancer and 8.1% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 12.6% 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 Nov. 12, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Nov. 5, 2022
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	248	269
Heart disease	217	221
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	54	59
Cerebrovascular diseases	50	50
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	43	40
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	42	38
Alzheimer's disease	33	31
Diabetes mellitus	25	27
Influenza and pneumonia	20	17
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	20	28

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending Nov. 12, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Nov. 5, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	150	138