Constitution State News

There were 20 deaths with cerebrovascular disease listed as the underlying cause reported in Connecticut during the week ending March 5, no changes from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending March 5, there were 426 deaths in the state. 21.8% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 16% were from cancer and 8.9% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 10.3% 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 5	Deaths in Week Ending Feb. 26
Heart disease	93	92
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	68	80
Cerebrovascular diseases	20	20
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	20	34
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	18	28
Alzheimer's disease	16	20
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	16	20
Diabetes mellitus	14	< 10
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	< 10
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	< 10	12

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending March 5	Deaths in Week Ending Feb. 26
Alzheimer disease and dementia	44	66