Enchantment State News

There were 19 deaths with chronic lower respiratory disease listed as the underlying cause reported in New Mexico during the week ending Oct. 29, 2022, a 5% decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Oct. 29, 2022, there were 376 deaths in the state. 20.7% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 18.1% were from cancer and 4.5% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 8.2% 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 Oct. 29, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Oct. 22, 2022
Heart disease	78	74
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	68	71
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	19	20
Alzheimer's disease	18	21
Diabetes mellitus	17	19
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	17	15
Cerebrovascular diseases	16	17
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	< 10
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	< 10	< 10
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	< 10	10

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending Oct. 29, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Oct. 22, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	31	44