Sooner State News

There were 43 deaths with chronic lower respiratory disease listed as the underlying cause reported in Oklahoma during the week ending July 9, 2022, a 10.3% increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending July 9, 2022, there were 639 deaths in the state. 27.4% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 19.1% were from cancer and 4.4% 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 July 9, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending July 2, 2022
Heart disease	175	174
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	122	166
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	43	39
Cerebrovascular diseases	27	27
Diabetes mellitus	21	24
Alzheimer's disease	18	22
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	18	23
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	10	18
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	< 10
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	< 10	< 10

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending July 9, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending July 2, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	64	54