Last Frontier News

There were less than 10 deaths with nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis listed as the underlying cause reported in Alaska during the week ending March 12, an increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending March 12, there were 27 deaths in the state. Less than 37% of deaths were caused by heart disease and less than 37% were from cancer

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 12	Deaths in Week Ending March 5
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	< 10	0
Diabetes mellitus	< 10	< 10
Alzheimer's disease	< 10	< 10
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	< 10	< 10
Cerebrovascular diseases	< 10	< 10
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	< 10	< 10
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	< 10	< 10
Heart disease	< 10	< 10
Influenza and pneumonia	0	0
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	0	< 10