Show-Me State Times

There were 10 deaths with influenza and pneumonia listed as the underlying cause reported in Missouri during the week ending Feb. 5, a 44.4 percent decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Feb. 5, there were 808 deaths in the state. 19.9 percent of deaths were caused by heart disease, 15.1 percent were from cancer and 47.5 percent were from COVID-19.

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 2022-02-05	Number of Deaths 2022-01-29
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	204	336
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	180	300
Heart disease	161	255
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	122	203
Cerebrovascular diseases	36	45
Alzheimer's disease	33	68
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	25	64
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	21	23
Diabetes mellitus	18	32
Influenza and pneumonia	10	18