An 18-year-old University of Maryland student died on Sunday from complications related to adenovirus, a family of viruses that has claimed many lives in recent months.<\/p>\n
Olivia Paregol, 18, \u201cappeared to be getting sicker and sicker\u201d in recent weeks, her father, Ian Paregol, told Washington, D.C., local news station WJLA. She had already been ill when she was diagnosed with adenovirus, which is not typically deadly. In most cases, the virus causes cold and flu symptoms like sore throat, fever and diarrhea, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), but it can also lead to neurological diseases. However, in people with a compromised immune system, the virus can be fatal. At the time of her death, the teen had also been battling Crohn\u2019s disease.<\/p>\n
The university confirmed that the first case of adenovirus was diagnosed on campus on Nov. 1, and since then, six cases in total have been reported at the school. A severe version of the virus \u2014 adenovirus Type 7 \u2014 was one of those identified, University Health Center director David McBride said in a statement. Paregol lived in a dormitory on the university\u2019s campus, where she likely contracted the virus.<\/p>\n