TY - JOUR AU - Denholm, Justin AU - Hunt, Patrick T1 - Hannibal’s Ophthalmia—A New Answer to An Ancient Question T2 - Emerging Infectious Disease journal PY - 2021 VL - 27 IS - 1 SP - 223 SN - 1080-6059 AB - In the spring of 217 bce, shortly after Hannibal’s famous elephantborne crossing of the Alps, the general was afflicted by an acute, painful eye condition that has never been adequately explained and that led to permanent unilateral loss of vision in 1 eye. In modern times, scant attention has been given to understanding this condition. We review the historical and geographic evidence and consider possible infective explanations for Hannibal's condition, including elephant-associated zoonoses. Ultimately, we suggest that a keratitis from waterborne organisms, such as Pseudomonas spp. or Acanthamoeba spp., might provide the best answer to this ancient enigma. KW - Hannibal’s ophthalmia KW - ophthalmia KW - Hannibal KW - Pseudomonas aeruginosa KW - Acanthamoeba spp. KW - bacteria KW - eyes KW - inflammatory eye disease KW - keratinitis KW - elephant-associated zoonoses KW - pachyderm-associated zoonoses KW - zoonoses DO - 10.3201/eid2701.191696 UR - https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/27/1/19-1696_article ER - End of Reference