vuvuzela claims its first victim:

 The dreaded vuvuzela claims its first victim: Woman bursts her windpipe 'by blowing too hard'

Insurance saleswoman Yvonne Mayer, 29, was unable to speak or eat for two days after ripping her windpipe when she blew the three foot horn during a street party in Cape Town.

The next day shocked doctors diagnosed her with a ruptured throat and ordered her to rest it completely to allow it to heal.

The bizarre injury is the first known vuvuzela-related accident since the World Cup kicked off last week. 

Yvonne, from Cape Town, said: 'I had never blown a vuvuzela before but was given one at work and was going to watch the first South Africa match so thought I'd take it along.

'I was walking towards the Fan Park in Cape Town and blowing it as hard as I could when suddenly my throat started to hurt. 

'At first I thought I'd gone down with a bug but the next day it was worse.

'When I went to the doctor he took a look and then laughed.   

'He said I'd ruptured my throat by blowing too hard, and that perhaps I had been doing it all wrong.

'After that I was told to go home and relax the whole area.   

'It meant I wasn't allowed to eat or speak at all for almost two days.

'I was starving by the time I could finally eat some soup and yogurt on Monday.'  

Yvonne was given a check-up after the incident at the Medi-Cross Hospital in Cape Town's Table Bay suburb. 

Specialists said an initial tear in her throat caused by air pressure had grown into a wound due to her constant blowing.

Yvonne added: 'They said it would heal by itself given time but were worried that it could get infected.

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