Evergreen Reporter

There were 255 deaths from diseases of the heart reported in the state of Washington in the week ending Nov. 5, making up 20.4% of total deaths by all causes in the state of Washington, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Nov. 5, there were 1,247 deaths in the state. 20.4% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 20.2% were from cancer and 4.2% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 10.4% 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	255	20.4
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	252	20.2
Cerebrovascular diseases	69	5.5
Alzheimer's disease	60	4.8
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	50	4
Diabetes mellitus	38	3
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	34	2.7
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	18	1.4
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	13	1
Influenza and pneumonia	12	1

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths	% of Total Deaths
Alzheimer disease and dementia	130	10.4