Dementia-related deaths in the U.S. likely to be underestimated 

The number of deaths attributable to dementia could be three times as many as current estimates suggest, according to a new study. Current estimates of dementia-related deaths are based off death certificates, which often aren't explicit about the cause of these deaths and instead list other conditions that older individuals may have also had, the authors explain. But using cognitive scores, including for memory recall, scientists evaluated a cohort of nearly 7,400 older individuals, around 14% of whose deaths could later be classified as dementia-related. Only 5% of the deaths were listed as such on death certificates, suggesting underreporting by a factor of nearly three. Consistent with prior reporting, dementia-related mortality was higher among Black people and those with less than a high school education.