Show-Me State Times

There were 189 deaths with COVID-19 listed as the underlying cause reported in Missouri during the week ending Feb. 19, a 33.7 percent decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Feb. 19, there were 1,076 deaths in the state. 18 percent of deaths were caused by heart disease, 19.4 percent were from cancer and 37.4 percent were from COVID-19. Additionally, 9.2 percent 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	Number of Deaths 2022-02-19	Number of Deaths 2022-02-12
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	213	317
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	209	222
Heart disease	194	263
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	189	285
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	66	80
Alzheimer's disease	49	56
Cerebrovascular diseases	44	55
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	26	20
Influenza and pneumonia	15	23
Diabetes mellitus	15	32

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths 2022-02-19	Number of Deaths 2022-02-12
Alzheimer disease and dementia	99	121