The Sconi

There were 17 deaths with diabetes mellitus listed as the underlying cause reported in Wisconsin during the week ending Aug. 27, 2022, a 5.6% decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Aug. 27, 2022, there were 983 deaths in the state. 21.8% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 20.4% were from cancer and 7.3% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 9.3% 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 Aug. 27, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Aug. 20, 2022
Heart disease	214	213
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	201	191
Cerebrovascular diseases	56	46
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	48	34
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	42	49
Alzheimer's disease	39	35
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	24	17
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	18	14
Diabetes mellitus	17	18
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	11

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending Aug. 27, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Aug. 20, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	91	86