Sooner State News

There were 42 deaths with COVID-19 listed as a contributing cause reported in Oklahoma during the week ending Aug. 6, 2022, a 14.3% decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Aug. 6, 2022, there were 724 deaths in the state. 23.9% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 18.5% were from cancer and 9.7% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 8.3% 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 Aug. 6, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending July 30, 2022
Heart disease	173	196
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	134	161
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	42	49
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	30	47
Cerebrovascular diseases	30	33
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	28	27
Alzheimer's disease	24	27
Diabetes mellitus	22	31
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	< 10
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	< 10	< 10

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending Aug. 6, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending July 30, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	60	68