Jakarta – Health workers in Indonesia's capital are running low on blood for transfusions in a dengue fever outbreak, blamed for at least 422 deaths nationwide this year.

Health Ministry officials fear the actual death toll may be much higher, The Indonesian Observer newspaper reported today. More than 16,000 people have been infected.

The mosquito-borne disease has killed 54 people in the capital alone. The Jakarta chapter of the Indonesian Red Cross said it can't meet all the requests for blood for patients there.

Dengue fever is transmitted by a parasite contained in the saliva of the Aedes Aegypti mosquito. There is no vaccine for the disease, which can cause fever, joint pains, chills and hemorrhaging.

Dengue fever hits Indonesia each year between the rainy and dry seasons.