A patient death in Louisiana has become the first in the nation to be linked to the highly contagious bird flu, which has been spreading among wild birds across the country.

Officials from the Louisiana Department of Health have announced the death of a patient hospitalized with H5N1 bird flu, the first such case in the United States. The patient – who was over 65 years old and reported to have underlying medical conditions – had previously become the first known person in the US with a severe case of the viral