Platinum Camp Records announced Friday that veteran reggae star, 51-year-old Barrington Levy was rushed to the hospital with a dangerously high temperature that caused him to collapse.

Image/CDC
Image/CDC

It was later determined that Levy was infected with the mosquito borne virus, dengue fever.

According to Daddy Biggs, CEO of Platinum Camp Records, “He said he’s hanging in there. He’s a little bit freaked out about being in a hospital because it’s his first time.”

Several concert dates in the US had to be cancelled due to his illness, prompting Levy to say in a statement, “I apologise to all my fans who wanted to see me but i ain’t got no other choice than taking care of my health.”

Through late August 2015, Jamaica has reported 33 dengue fever cases this year.

Dengue fever is an infectious disease carried by mosquitoes and caused by any of four related dengue viruses. This disease was once called called “break-bone fever” because it sometimes causes severe joint and muscle pain that feels like bones are breaking.

Dengue fever of multiple types is found in most countries of the tropics and subtropics particularly during and after rainy season.

LISTEN to Barrington Levy perform “Here I Come” live in 1984

There are four types of dengue virus: DEN-1, DEN-2, DEN-3 and DEN-4.

People get the dengue virus from the bite of an infected Aedes mosquito. It is not contagious from person to person.

There are three types of dengue fever in order of less severe to most: the typical uncomplicated dengue fever, dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHS) and dengue shock syndrome (DSS).

The Platinum Camp staff and CEO Daddy Bigg$ asks the fans of Mr Levy to whisper a word of prayer for his speedy recovery.

Robert Herriman is a microbiologist and the Editor-in-Chief of Outbreak News Today and the Executive Editor of The Global Dispatch

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