Beaver State News

There were 34 deaths with chronic lower respiratory disease listed as the underlying cause reported in Oregon during the week ending June 18, 2022, a 6.3% increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending June 18, 2022, there were 587 deaths in the state. 20.4% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 22.3% were from cancer and 7.2% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 10.7% 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 18, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending June 11, 2022
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	131	117
Heart disease	120	139
Cerebrovascular diseases	37	39
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	34	32
Alzheimer's disease	32	33
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	27	21
Diabetes mellitus	23	24
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	15	14
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	13
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	< 10	< 10

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending June 18, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending June 11, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	63	75