Peach Tree Times

There were 821 deaths with COVID-19 listed as a contributing cause reported in Georgia during the week ending August 28, a 24.4 percent increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending August 28, there were 2,573 deaths in the state. 16.4 percent of deaths were caused by heart disease, 13.7 percent were from cancer and 62 percent were from COVID-19. Additionally, 7 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 2021-08-28	Number of Deaths 2021-08-21
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	821	660
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	773	632
Heart disease	422	390
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	352	330
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	99	88
Alzheimer's disease	98	99
Cerebrovascular diseases	88	88
Diabetes mellitus	60	57
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	46	40
Influenza and pneumonia	20	25

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths 2021-08-28	Number of Deaths 2021-08-21
Alzheimer disease and dementia	179	187