Rushmore State News

There were 21 deaths with heart disease listed as the underlying cause reported in South Dakota during the week ending July 10, a 27.6 percent decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending July 10, there were 148 deaths in the state. 14.2 percent of deaths were caused by heart disease and 24.3 percent 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	Number of Deaths 2021-07-10	Number of Deaths 2021-07-03
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	36	37
Heart disease	21	29
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	11	13
Cerebrovascular diseases	10	10
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	< 10
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	< 10	< 10
Diabetes mellitus	< 10	< 10
Alzheimer's disease	< 10	< 10
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	0	< 10
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	0	< 10