Enchantment State News

There were 14 deaths with Alzheimer's disease listed as the underlying cause reported in New Mexico during the week ending September 11, an increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending September 11, there were 470 deaths in the state. 12.6 percent of deaths were caused by heart disease, 18.3 percent were from cancer and 36 percent were from COVID-19. Additionally, 7.2 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 2021-09-11	Number of Deaths 2021-09-04
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	89	72
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	86	77
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	80	69
Heart disease	59	58
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	19	16
Diabetes mellitus	18	< 10
Alzheimer's disease	14	< 10
Cerebrovascular diseases	13	11
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	< 10
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	< 10	< 10

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths 2021-09-11	Number of Deaths 2021-09-04
Alzheimer disease and dementia	34	20