Aretaeus of Cappadocia (1st century CE) described a young man with chronic and recurring abdominal
distress possibly representing the first recorded instance of Crohn disease (CD).1-3 More evidence that this disease was extant for many years comes from the description of the 10th century English king, Alfred “the great,†who suffered for many years from what was a typical enteritis but also had anal fistula and/or abscess.
