Peach Tree Times

There were 27 deaths with COVID-19 listed as the underlying cause reported in Georgia in the week ending July 16, making up 3.2% of total deaths by all causes in Georgia, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending July 16, there were 834 deaths in the state. 23.9% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 22.3% were from cancer and 8% were from COVID-19.

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	199	23.9
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	186	22.3
Cerebrovascular diseases	54	6.5
Alzheimer's disease	52	6.2
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	45	5.4
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	40	4.8
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	27	3.2
Diabetes mellitus	18	2.2
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	17	2
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	< 1.2