Athenaeus of Attalia (Ancient Greek: Ἀθήναιος) (1st century AD), was a physician, and the founder of the Pneumatic school of medicine.
Athenaeus appears to have written extensively, as the twenty-fourth volume of one of his works is quoted by Galen,[4] and the twenty-ninth by Oribasius.
Galen gives the following report:Athenaeus of Attaleia ... founded the medical school known as the Pneumatists.
It suits his doctrine to speak of a containing cause in illness since he bases himself upon the Stoics and he was a pupil and disciple of Posidonius[7] ... Athenaeus’ three types are as follows: the first consists of containing causes, the second of preceding causes, and the third of the matter of antecedent causes: for this is what they call everything external to the body which harms it and produces disease in it.
Alterations are produced in the natural pneuma by these [i.e., preceding] causes together with those which are external [i.e., antecedent causes], and with the body moistened or desiccated, chilled or heated, these are said to be the containing causes of diseases.