Sunshine Sentinel

There were 45 deaths with influenza and pneumonia listed as the underlying cause reported in Florida during the week ending May 29, 2021, a 2.2% decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending May 29, 2021, there were 4,489 deaths in the state. 20.4% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 20% were from cancer and 9.8% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 7.8% 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	Deaths in Week Ending May 29, 2021	Deaths in Week Ending May 22, 2021
Heart disease	915	904
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	896	958
Cerebrovascular diseases	266	308
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	236	283
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	206	252
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	201	214
Diabetes mellitus	155	118
Alzheimer's disease	95	131
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	58	56
Influenza and pneumonia	45	46

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending May 29, 2021	Deaths in Week Ending May 22, 2021
Alzheimer disease and dementia	352	357