A recent case of palpebral anthrax

Anthrax disease is an acute infection caused by Bacillus anthracis. It appears in three forms: pulmonary, intestinal, and cutaneous, whose palpebral location is rare but serious. The authors report the case of a 38-year-old patient who presented 3 weeks after the appearance of an upper and lower palpebral tumefaction. Questioning revealed that he was a cattle breeder. The ophthalmologic examination of the right eye brought out serosanguineous blisters, an edema, and necrotic scabs involving the upper and lower eyelids, preventing any clinical examination of the ocular bulb. The bacteriological sample was negative. The patient progressed well when treated with G penicillin, but retained a cicatricial ectropion. Anthrax is receiving increasing interest given how difficult it is to diagnose, the severe prognosis, and the possibility of its dissemination in bacteriological warfare or bioterrorism.