Green Mountain Times

There were 24 deaths with heart disease listed as the underlying cause reported in Vermont during the week ending July 17, a 9.1 percent increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending July 17, there were 103 deaths in the state. 23.3 percent of deaths were caused by heart disease and 16.5 percent were from cancer Additionally, 12.6 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 2021-07-17	Number of Deaths 2021-07-10
Heart disease	24	22
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	17	34
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	< 10	< 10
Diabetes mellitus	< 10	< 10
Alzheimer's disease	< 10	< 10
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	< 10	< 10
Cerebrovascular diseases	< 10	< 10
Influenza and pneumonia	0	0
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	0	0
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	0	< 10

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths 2021-07-17	Number of Deaths 2021-07-10
Alzheimer disease and dementia	13	11