Show-Me State Times

There were 58 deaths with chronic lower respiratory disease listed as the underlying cause reported in Missouri during the week ending June 24, a 21.6% decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending June 24, there were 1,204 deaths in the state. 23.6% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 22.3% were from cancer and less than 0.8% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 9.5% 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 June 24	Deaths in Week Ending June 17
Heart disease	284	270
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	269	269
Cerebrovascular diseases	68	77
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	58	74
Alzheimer's disease	47	46
Diabetes mellitus	35	31
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	34	35
Influenza and pneumonia	19	23
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	< 10	< 10
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	< 10	12

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending June 24	Deaths in Week Ending June 17
Alzheimer disease and dementia	114	103