Indonesian officials say a 32-year-old woman from an area just west of the capital of Jakarta has died of bird flu.

The health ministry said in a statement Monday that the woman died at her home in the city of Tangerang last Thursday, after her family ignored doctors' orders and checked her out of a hospital.

The statement said the woman's family kept chickens in their backyard.

Humans are usually infected with bird flu by direct contact with infected poultry, but experts fear the H5N1 virus may mutate into a form easily transmitted between people.

Scientists fear such a mutation could spark a global pandemic with a potential death toll of millions.

Some information for this report was provided by AFP and Reuters.