Dr. Kaing Sor sitting in VOA Khmer studio in Phnom Penh.

Pneumonia remains a danger to many Cambodia children, but doctors are now considering whether cases should be treated at home or in the hospital.

A new study sponsored by the World Health Organization has demonstrated home treatments with oral antibiotics can be as effective as hospitalization.

The main causes of the disease in Cambodia are viruses, bacteria or parasites, which enter the lungs in a variety of ways, said Dr. Kaing Sor, a pneumonia expert at the Mithapheap Khmer Hospital in Phnom Penh,

The inhalation of pesticides or other chemical toxins can cause pneumonia as well, he said, as a guest on "Hello VOA" Thursday.

Coughing in the morning or the appearance of green phlegm are not a sign of pneumonia, but could be signs of smoking or asthma, he said.