Beaver State News

There were 31 deaths with COVID-19 listed as a contributing cause reported in Oregon during the week ending June 4, 2022, a 121.4% increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending June 4, 2022, there were 549 deaths in the state. 20.9% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 19.3% were from cancer and 10% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 11.7% 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 June 4, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending May 28, 2022
Heart disease	115	112
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	106	148
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	34	35
Alzheimer's disease	32	31
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	31	14
Cerebrovascular diseases	27	52
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	24	< 10
Diabetes mellitus	17	26
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	< 10
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	< 10	< 10

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending June 4, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending May 28, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	64	76