Italian man bleeding from his eyes
© University Hospital Messina
This shocking image shows how a man cried blood for an hour after suffering from a rare medical condition.

The unnamed man, 52, is thought to have visited a hospital in the Sicilian city of Messina after blood started leaking from both his eyes.

Initially, the bleeding only carried on for a couple of minutes before it stopped.

However while he was waiting to be seen by the medical staff it started again.

Doctors discovered the man had non-cancerous tumours underneath his eyelids and diagnosed he was suffering from a rare condition called haemolacria.

These tumours are made of blood vessel cells, which are often seen on the skin of children and are sometimes known as strawberry marks.
What is haemolacria?

The New England Journal of Medicine states: "Haemolacria is a rare condition that is characterized by the presence of blood in the tears."

This can be connected to cases of infection, inflammation or some form of trauma to the eye.

The tears can vary from appearing to be just red-tinged to appearing to be made entirely of blood.
A common infection such as conjunctivitis can also cause it or even a tear in the tear ducts.
The case was reported in the New England Journal of Medicine.

It stated the man couldn't explain why it was happening as he hadn't injured either of his eyes or his nose or even any other part of his head.

He also said he did not suffer from nosebleeds, bleeding gums or was easily bruised.