The Sconi

There were 71 deaths with COVID-19 listed as a contributing cause reported in Wisconsin during the week ending Feb. 26, a 33 percent decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Feb. 26, there were 777 deaths in the state. 23.6 percent of deaths were caused by heart disease, 18.3 percent were from cancer and 15.3 percent were from COVID-19. Additionally, 10.7 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 2022-02-26	Number of Deaths 2022-02-19
Heart disease	183	197
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	142	199
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	71	106
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	48	76
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	43	34
Alzheimer's disease	34	34
Cerebrovascular diseases	31	43
Diabetes mellitus	17	24
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	< 10
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	< 10	< 10

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths 2022-02-26	Number of Deaths 2022-02-19
Alzheimer disease and dementia	83	92