The Sconi

There were 32 deaths with diabetes mellitus listed as the underlying cause reported in Wisconsin during the week ending Dec. 18, a 6.7 percent increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Dec. 18, there were 1,221 deaths in the state. 17.1 percent of deaths were caused by heart disease, 15 percent were from cancer and 39.8 percent were from COVID-19. Additionally, 9 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 2021-12-18	Number of Deaths 2021-12-11
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	266	288
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	220	240
Heart disease	209	257
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	183	229
Alzheimer's disease	57	55
Cerebrovascular diseases	47	41
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	43	63
Diabetes mellitus	32	30
Influenza and pneumonia	21	12
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	13	< 10

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths 2021-12-18	Number of Deaths 2021-12-11
Alzheimer disease and dementia	110	125