Keystone Today

There were 17 deaths with influenza and pneumonia listed as the underlying cause reported in Pennsylvania during the week ending July 30, 2022, a 29.2% decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending July 30, 2022, there were 2,528 deaths in the state. 22.5% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 20.8% were from cancer and 6.5% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 8.5% 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	Deaths in Week Ending July 30, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending July 23, 2022
Heart disease	568	547
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	527	535
Cerebrovascular diseases	117	133
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	100	112
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	94	110
Alzheimer's disease	67	65
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	64	67
Diabetes mellitus	59	59
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	55	50
Influenza and pneumonia	17	24

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending July 30, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending July 23, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	214	224