Big Sky Times

There were less than 10 deaths with chronic lower respiratory disease listed as the underlying cause reported in Montana during the week ending Feb. 26, a decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Feb. 26, there were 162 deaths in the state. 17.9 percent of deaths were caused by heart disease, 18.5 percent were from cancer and 31.5 percent were from COVID-19. Additionally, 13 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 2022-02-26	Number of Deaths 2022-02-19
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	30	29
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	29	29
Heart disease	29	41
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	22	21
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	< 10
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	< 10	< 10
Diabetes mellitus	< 10	< 10
Alzheimer's disease	< 10	< 10
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	< 10	11
Cerebrovascular diseases	< 10	< 10

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths 2022-02-26	Number of Deaths 2022-02-19
Alzheimer disease and dementia	21	15