Keystone Today

There were 262 deaths with COVID-19 listed as a contributing cause reported in Pennsylvania during the week ending May 8, 2021, a 1.6% increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending May 8, 2021, there were 2,694 deaths in the state. 21.6% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 18.7% were from cancer and 18.4% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 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 May 8, 2021	Deaths in Week Ending May 1, 2021
Heart disease	583	586
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	505	505
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	262	258
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	233	239
Cerebrovascular diseases	132	110
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	90	104
Diabetes mellitus	76	84
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	61	54
Alzheimer's disease	61	67
Influenza and pneumonia	39	28

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending May 8, 2021	Deaths in Week Ending May 1, 2021
Alzheimer disease and dementia	188	212