Pelican State News

There were 12 deaths with influenza and pneumonia listed as the underlying cause reported in Louisiana during the week ending September 4, a 42.9 percent decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending September 4, there were 1,149 deaths in the state. 19.2 percent of deaths were caused by heart disease, 13.1 percent were from cancer and 60.8 percent were from COVID-19. Additionally, 6.2 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 2021-09-04	Number of Deaths 2021-08-28
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	356	411
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	343	390
Heart disease	221	199
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	151	175
Cerebrovascular diseases	48	41
Alzheimer's disease	44	48
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	34	38
Diabetes mellitus	33	32
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	13	12
Influenza and pneumonia	12	21

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths 2021-09-04	Number of Deaths 2021-08-28
Alzheimer disease and dementia	71	76