The Sconi

There were 35 deaths with diabetes mellitus listed as the underlying cause reported in Wisconsin during the week ending Sept. 24, 2022, a 45.8% increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Sept. 24, 2022, there were 1,105 deaths in the state. 21.4% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 20.3% were from cancer and 5.5% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 9.7% 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 Sept. 24, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Sept. 17, 2022
Heart disease	236	220
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	224	220
Cerebrovascular diseases	52	53
Alzheimer's disease	45	32
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	36	36
Diabetes mellitus	35	24
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	32	43
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	25	21
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	20	14
Influenza and pneumonia	10	10

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending Sept. 24, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Sept. 17, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	107	91