Sunshine Sentinel

There were 63 deaths from influenza and pneumonia reported in Florida in the week ending Dec. 24, making up 1.7% of total deaths by all causes in Florida, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Dec. 24, there were 3,660 deaths in the state. 21.6% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 21% were from cancer and 6.1% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 10.8% 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	% of Total Deaths
Heart disease	792	21.6
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	767	21
Cerebrovascular diseases	276	7.5
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	200	5.5
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	128	3.5
Alzheimer's disease	121	3.3
Diabetes mellitus	101	2.8
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	95	2.6
Influenza and pneumonia	63	1.7
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	44	1.2

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths	% of Total Deaths
Alzheimer disease and dementia	395	10.8