Old Dominion News

There were 98 deaths with COVID-19 listed as the underlying cause reported in Virginia in the week ending May 1, making up 6.7 percent of total deaths by all causes in Virginia, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending May 1, there were 1,462 deaths in the state. 19.9 percent of deaths were caused by heart disease, 20.2 percent were from cancer and 14.4 percent were from COVID-19. Additionally, 9.4 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	Cause of Death	% of Total Deaths
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	295	20.2
Heart disease	291	19.9
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	113	7.7
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	98	6.7
Cerebrovascular diseases	78	5.3
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	55	3.8
Alzheimer's disease	44	3
Diabetes mellitus	32	2.2
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	23	1.6
Influenza and pneumonia	12	0.8

Cause of Death	Cause of Death	% of Total Deaths
Alzheimer disease and dementia	138	9.4