Keystone Today

There were 111 deaths with COVID-19 listed as a contributing cause reported in Pennsylvania in the week ending Dec. 10, 2022, making up 3.9% of total deaths by all causes in Pennsylvania, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Dec. 10, 2022, there were 2,860 deaths in the state. 21.4% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 19.3% were from cancer and 6.4% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 9.5% 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	Number of Deaths	% of Total Deaths
Heart disease	612	21.4
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	551	19.3
Cerebrovascular diseases	143	5
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	120	4.2
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	111	3.9
Alzheimer's disease	90	3.1
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	73	2.6
Influenza and pneumonia	72	2.5
Diabetes mellitus	69	2.4
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	56	2

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths	% of Total Deaths
Alzheimer disease and dementia	271	9.5