Silver State Times

There were 13 deaths with diabetes mellitus listed as the underlying cause reported in Nevada during the week ending March 12, a 30% increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending March 12, there were 406 deaths in the state. 23.4% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 15% were from cancer and 15.5% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 6.4% 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	Deaths in Week Ending March 12	Deaths in Week Ending March 5
Heart disease	95	111
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	61	55
Cerebrovascular diseases	36	21
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	35	59
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	28	55
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	17	22
Diabetes mellitus	13	10
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	< 10
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	< 10	< 10
Alzheimer's disease	< 10	11

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending March 12	Deaths in Week Ending March 5
Alzheimer disease and dementia	26	26