H1N1 Claims First Cambodian Life, VOA Khmer

The H1N1 flu has killed its first victim in Cambodia, a 40-year-old woman, Prime Minister Hun Sen announced Monday.

The virus has infected 88 people in the country so far, and the death has put health officials on alert.

“This is the first case,” Hun Sen said, at the inauguration of a new Ministry of Tourism building. “She had been sick for a long time. She had lung problems.”

The woman had been ill since Sept. 18, traveling to a clinic two days later, before she was taken to Phnom Penh’s Pasteur Institute for testing. Her condition worsened, and she was taken to Calmette hospital on Sunday afternoon, where she died.

Cambodia saw its first cases of the H1N1 flu, sometimes called swine flu, in June, first in traveling US students. The World Health Organization estimates more then 300,000 cases of the flu have been confirmed globally, with more than 3,900 dying.

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The wife is injecting drug into her husband's muscle using an unclean syringe.

Public smoking bans reduce heart attack risk: study

WASHINGTON - Bans on smoking in public places, by reducing passive smoking, can decrease the risk of heart attacks by an average of 17 per cent, according to a new US and European study.

The study, which examined the effects of smoking bans in regions across the United States and several countries in Europe, including Italy and Scotland, was published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

It found bans in smoking in places including cafes and bars produced an overall 17 per cent decrease in the risk of acute myocardial infarction - more commonly known as a heart attack - with a particular reduction in the risks to the young and non-smokers.

In the United States, 32 states have passed laws banning smoking in public spaces and work places.

According to the study, passive smoking - the inhalation of second-hand smoke - can produce a 30 per cent increase in the risk of acute myocardial infarction.