Show-Me State Times

There were 55 deaths with COVID-19 listed as a contributing cause reported in Missouri during the week ending Oct. 22, 2022, a 44.7% increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Oct. 22, 2022, there were 1,330 deaths in the state. 22.8% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 20.5% were from cancer and 7.1% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 9.4% 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 Oct. 22, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Oct. 15, 2022
Heart disease	303	280
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	273	230
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	81	77
Cerebrovascular diseases	73	69
Alzheimer's disease	56	57
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	55	38
Diabetes mellitus	42	30
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	40	29
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	25	23
Influenza and pneumonia	24	12

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending Oct. 22, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Oct. 15, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	125	131