Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings April 2014, Volume 27, Number 2 | Page 79

Cardiologist in the shadow of Angkor Wat: a medical mission to Cambodia John Davis Cantwell, MD In a medical mission to Cambodia, our team of doctors, dentists, and nurses saw over 1000 patients during 4 days of clinics. The most common cardiovascular problems were hypertension (11%) and heart murmurs (3%). Obesity and a history of diabetes were very rare. Unlike the cardiac patients I typically see in my Atlanta office, the Cambodians were trim and muscular from their predominantly farming and, less often, construction jobs. They are a gentle, seemingly happy people, appreciative of whatever limited medical help we could offer. Tuberculosis was the most prevalent serious illness noted. y knowledge of Cambodia was mainly limited to the 1970s atrocities I had read about: Pol Pot, the Khmer Rouge, “Killing Fields,” and land mines causing legless children. I had heard of Angkor Wat, felt by some to be the eighth wonder of the old world. When I heard about the Flying Doctors of America’s medical mission to Cambodia, my wife and I signed on, I as a cardiologist and Marilyn as an aide in the distribution of medications. The team was headed by Allen Hord, MD, an anesthesiologist and pain specialist, assisted by Dave Rayburn, EMT. The team included two other physicians, nurses, dentists, and a chiropractor. M CAMBODIA I tried to learn as much as I could about the country before we arrived. Twenty hours of flying time (Atlanta to Seoul to Siem Reap) provided ample opportunity for reading. About 1000 years ago, the Khmer Empire ruled most of Southeast Asia between the 9th and 15th centuries. The capital, Angkor, sprawls over 138 square miles and features innumerable temples distributed over 77 square miles, the most famous of which (besides Angkor Wat) include Angkor Thom, Ta Prohm (Figure 1), and Banteay Srei. Angkor Thom alone is spread over 10 square miles and was built by Jayavarman VII, the greatest Khmer king in the 13th century who converted from Hinduism to Buddhism, a faith followed today by 90% of the people. When a Chinese diplomat visited in 1296 ad, there were at least 700,000 inhabitants of Angkor Thom (when the populations of Paris and London were <100,000). Today, the temple, Ta Prohm, brings to mind scenes from the movie Tomb Raiders, starring Angelina Jolie (who has a special Proc (Bayl Univ Med Cent) 2014;27(2):153–155 Figure 1. Ta Prohm Temple, used in the Tomb Raiders movie. interest in landmine removal and even adopted a Cambodian child). Cambodia today is a multiparty democracy under a constitutional monarch, King Norodom Sihamoni. The prime minister (for the past 28 years) is Hun Sen, a former member of the notorious Khmer Rouge. Cambodia is about the size of Oklahoma, with a population of 15 million, 75% of whom are farmers. It is a poor country, with a per capita income of only $2470 (1). Over a third live in poverty. An estimated 1 of 275 people have been maimed by landmines. Under the 4-year rule (1975–1979) of Khmer Rouge and notorious leader Pol Pot, up to 2 million Cambodians died of starvation, overwork, and execution. From Piedmont Heart Institute, Atlanta, Georgia. Corresponding author: John Davis Cantwell, MD, MACP, Piedmont Heart Institute, 275 Collier Road, NW, Suite 500, Atlanta, GA 30309 (e-mail: john. [email protected]). 153