Beaver State News

There were 12 deaths with COVID-19 listed as the underlying cause reported in Oregon during the week ending June 17, an increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending June 17, there were 777 deaths in the state. 17.8% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 22% were from cancer and 3.9% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 10% 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 17	Deaths in Week Ending June 10
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	171	160
Heart disease	138	149
Cerebrovascular diseases	39	47
Alzheimer's disease	38	40
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	32	30
Diabetes mellitus	23	27
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	18	< 10
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	12	< 10
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	< 10
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	< 10	< 10

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending June 17	Deaths in Week Ending June 10
Alzheimer disease and dementia	78	83