Silver State Times

There were 172 deaths with COVID-19 listed as a contributing cause reported in Nevada during the week ending August 28, a 3.4 percent decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending August 28, there were 717 deaths in the state. 19.9 percent of deaths were caused by heart disease, 16.9 percent were from cancer and 47.1 percent were from COVID-19. Additionally, 6.6 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)	172	178
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	166	171
Heart disease	143	112
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	121	106
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	29	25
Alzheimer's disease	27	20
Cerebrovascular diseases	23	21
Diabetes mellitus	15	18
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	< 10
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	< 10	< 10

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths 2021-08-28	Number of Deaths 2021-08-21
Alzheimer disease and dementia	47	42