Sunshine Sentinel

There were 221 deaths from chronic lower respiratory diseases reported in Florida in the week ending Aug. 5, making up 5.3% of total deaths by all causes in Florida, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Aug. 5, there were 4,182 deaths in the state. 21% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 20.3% were from cancer and 4.9% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 8.2% 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	877	21
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	849	20.3
Cerebrovascular diseases	270	6.5
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	221	5.3
Diabetes mellitus	146	3.5
Alzheimer's disease	120	2.9
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	120	2.9
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	85	2
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	67	1.6
Influenza and pneumonia	47	1.1

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths	% of Total Deaths
Alzheimer disease and dementia	341	8.2