Rare diagnosis sees woman crying tears of blood
Doctors have been baffled by a rare case of a woman crying blood.
The woman, 25, was taken to the emergency room at a hospital in India after blood was seen coming from her eyes, according to her case in BMJ Case Reports.
Doctors asked her if she was suffering any dizziness or pain to which she replied no.
“Extensive physical, ophthalmological and radiological evaluation failed to reveal other potential causes of her complaint,” researchers wrote.
Puzzled as to what the cause of the issue was, doctors eventually determined the woman had haemolacria which they described as a rare condition.
Haemolacria or bloody tears is caused by a number of different factors, according to a study published in the US National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI).
It can be caused by conjunctavia or vascular disorders.
But in the woman’s case, doctors determined it was caused by something different entirely making her specific condition even rarer.
Woman's bloody tears caused by menstruation
The woman’s bloody tears were actually caused by menstruation.
“A diagnosis of ocular vicarious menstruation was made and she was treated with oral contraceptive pills,” researchers wrote in BMJ Case Reports.
The NCBI study stated the bloody tears might occur “during menstruation or hormonal disturbances”.
“This phenomenon is usually seen around menarche or rarely around the menopause,” it stated.
“The vicarious menstruation is usually painless, may last for seconds to minutes, and may involve one or both eyes.”
The woman had no recurrence of the bloody tears in a three-month follow-up appointment.
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