Helen E. O'Connell (born 3 April 1962) is an Australian professor of

urology Urology (from Greek οὖρον ''ouron'' "urine" and '' -logia'' "study of"), also known as genitourinary surgery, is the branch of medicine that focuses on surgical and medical diseases of the urinary-tract system and the reproductive org ...

and a pioneer in the anatomical study of the clitoris. She is a leading researcher in the area of female pelvic anatomy and was the first woman to complete training as a urologist in Australia.

Education

In 1994, O'Connell graduated from Melbourne University with a Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery degree as Australia's first female urological surgeon. From 1994 to 1995, she moved to the United States for advanced training (a

fellowship A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements. Within the context of higher education ...

), with neuro-urologist Edward J. McGuire in Houston, Texas. In 1997, she obtained a

Master of Medicine Master of Medicine (MMed) is a postgraduate professional clinical degree awarded by medical schools to physicians following a period of instruction, supervised clinical rotations, and examination. The degree usually takes three years to complete, ...

degree for a project on female

urinary incontinence Urinary incontinence (UI), also known as involuntary urination, is any uncontrolled leakage of urine. It is a common and distressing problem, which may have a large impact on quality of life. It has been identified as an important issue in geri ...

. In 2004, she graduated from the

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in Victoria. Its main campus is located in Parkville, an inner suburb no ...

, Royal Melbourne Hospital and Melbourne Private Hospital with a

Doctor of Medicine Doctor of Medicine (abbreviated M.D., from the Latin ''Medicinae Doctor'') is a medical degree, the meaning of which varies between different jurisdictions. In the United States, and some other countries, the M.D. denotes a professional degree. T ...

in the field of female pelvic anatomy.

Career

Since 2016, she has been director of the urology department of the Western Health in the Australian state of

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

. O'Connell was director of the Royal Australian College of Surgeons (RACS) between 2005 and 2014 and elected Director of the Urological Society of Australia and New Zealand from 2005 to 2010. She was Chair of the College's Surgical Research Board from 2007 to 2009. Her clinical and research focus is on the surgical treatment of lower urinary tract problems, particularly incontinence and bladder sphincter obstruction. In 2019, she was appointed director of the International Continence Society meeting to be held in Melbourne in 2021. To illustrate the historically low proportion of women in the medical sciences, and particularly in the field of urology, O'Connell's biography mentions at the outset that she became the first female urologist in Australia in 1993. O'Connell's aim was to improve our knowledge of female pelvic anatomy, including the

genitourinary tract The genitourinary system, or urogenital system, are the organs of the reproductive system and the urinary system. These are grouped together because of their proximity to each other, their common embryological origin and the use of common pathw ...

with the reproductive organs, through insights from surgery.

Clitoris

In 1998, O'Connell published research results on the widely ramified deeper structure of the clitoris, and in 2005, in the ''

Journal of Urology A journal, from the Old French ''journal'' (meaning "daily"), may refer to: *Bullet journal, a method of personal organization * Diary, a record of what happened over the course of a day or other period *Daybook, also known as a general journal, ...

'', the article "Anatomy of the Clitoris". Multiplanar imaging of clitoral anatomy using magnetic resonance imaging in the living state supplemented the dissection material and showed that the erectile

vestibular bulbs In female anatomy, the vestibular bulbs, bulbs of the vestibule or clitoral bulbs are two elongated masses of erectile tissue typically described as being situated on either side of the vaginal opening. They are united to each other in front by ...

are a part of the clitoris, and that the

female urethra The urethra (from Greek οὐρήθρα – ''ourḗthrā'') is a tube that connects the urinary bladder to the urinary meatus for the removal of urine from the body of both females and males. In human females and other primates, the urethra con ...

and vagina, although not erectile in character, are closely related structures that form a tissue cluster with the clitoris that is the site of female sexual function and

orgasm Orgasm (from Greek , ; "excitement, swelling") or sexual climax is the sudden discharge of accumulated sexual excitement during the sexual response cycle, resulting in rhythmic, involuntary muscular contractions in the pelvic region chara ...

. Among others, the science magazine ''

New Scientist ''New Scientist'' is a magazine covering all aspects of science and technology. Based in London, it publishes weekly English-language editions in the United Kingdom, the United States and Australia. An editorially separate organisation publish ...

'' reported on the results of the investigation. In 2010, O'Connell succeeded for the first time in depicting a stimulated clitoris in a 3D image and showing its more than 15,000 nerve endings in the pelvic area. O'Connell has conducted several research projects on the female genital system. This has resulted in five publications in the form of articles, including her dissertation "Review of the Anatomy of Clitoris", defended in 2005. In 2003, she was scientific advisor for the documentary film "The Clitoris, the Great Unknown", in which she also gave an interview. In the context, O'Connell referred to an anatomical textbook she used while studying in the 1980s. She said this impression became the motivation for her to focus on this area because there was no description of the clitoris in it, although there was a whole chapter on the mechanism of erection with information on the

neuroanatomy Neuroanatomy is the study of the structure and organization of the nervous system. In contrast to animals with radial symmetry, whose nervous system consists of a distributed network of cells, animals with bilateral symmetry have segregated, defi ...

and

vascular The blood vessels are the components of the circulatory system that transport blood throughout the human body. These vessels transport blood cells, nutrients, and oxygen to the tissues of the body. They also take waste and carbon dioxide away f ...

nutrition of the penis, without ever mentioning the clitoris. Later as internship trainee in the surgery operating room, she noticed that special attention was paid to preserving sexual function during surgical procedures on men, while preserving sexual function during procedures on women seemed more incidental. She said there was no available manual on the nerves and blood supply to the clitoris.

Awards and honours

O'Connell was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia in the 2021 Australia Day Honours for "distinguished service to medical education, and to medicine, in the field of urology, as an academic and clinician, and to professional groups".

Publications

* Helen E. O'Connell, Edward J. McGuire, Sherif Aboseif, Akihiro Usui
Transurethral collagen therapy in women
In: The Journal of urology, 1995, page 1463-1465. * Laurence M. Harewood, Laurence K. Cleeve, Helen E. O'Connell, Alavn J. Pope, Michael G. Vaughan, Dinesh Agarwal
Transurethral needle ablation of the prostate (TUNA): clinical results and ultrasound, endoscopic, and histologic findings in pilot study of patients in urinary retention
In: Journal of endourology, 1995, page 407-412. * Edward J. McGuire, Helen E. O'Connell
Surgical treatment of intrinsic urethral dysfunction. Slings
In: The Urologic Clinics of North America, 1995, page 657-664. * H. D. Flood, S. J. Malhotra, H. E. O'Connell, M. J. Ritchey, D. A. Bloom, E. J. McGuire
Long‐term results and complications using augmentation cystoplasty in reconstructive urology
In: Neurourology and urodynamics, 1995, page 297-309. * E. J. McGuire, R. D. Cespedes, Helen E. O'Connell
Leak-point pressures
In: Urologic Clinics, 1996, page 253-262. * S. R. Aboseif, H. E. O'Connell, A. Usui, E.J. McGuire
Collagen injection for intrinsic sphincteric deficiency in men
In: The Journal of urology, 1996, page 10-13. * Edward J. McGuire, R. Duane Cespedes, Cindy A. Cross, Helen E. O'Connell
Videourodynamic studies
In: Urologic Clinics, 1996, page 309-321. * Helen E. O'Connell, John M. Hutson, Colin R. Anderson, Robert J. Plenter
Anatomical relationship between urethra and clitoris
In: The Journal of urology, 1998, page 1892-1897. * J. L. Morgan, Helen E. O'Connell, E. J. McGuire
Is intrinsic sphincter deficiency a complication of simple hysterectomy?
In: The Journal of urology, 2000, page 767-769. * Megan A. Rees, Helen E. O'Connell, Robert J. Plenter, John M. Hutson
The suspensory ligament of the clitoris: connective tissue supports of the erectile tissues of the female urogenital region
In: Clinical Anatomy: The Official Journal of the American Association of Clinical Anatomists and the British Association of Clinical Anatomists, 2000, page 397-403, * M. Sherburn, J. R. Guthrie, E. C. Dudley, Helen E. O'Connell, L. Dennerstein
Is incontinence associated with menopause?
In: Obstetrics & gynecologym, 2001, Seite 628-633. * Helen O'Connell, K. V. Sanjeevan, J. M. Hutson
Anatomy of the clitoris
In: The Journal of urology, 2005, page 1189-1195. * Helen O'Conell, John Ol DeLancey
Clitoral anatomy in nulliparous, healthy, premenopausal volunteers using unenhanced magnetic resonance imaging
In: The Journal of urology, 2005, page 2060-2063. * Helen O'Connell, Kalavamparan V. Sanjeevan: Anatomy of female genitalia. In: Goldstein, I., Meston, C., Davis, S. R, and Traish, A. Women's Sexual Function and Dysfunction. Study, Diagnosis and Treatment. London: Taylor & Francis, 2006, page 105 ff. * Helen O'Connell, Norm Eizenberg, Marzia Rahman, Joan Cleeve
The anatomy of the distal vagina: towards unity
In: The journal of sexual medicine, 2008, page 1883-1891. * Damon P Eisen, Ian R Fraser, Linda M Sung, Moira Finlay, Scott Bowden, Helen O'Connell
Decreased viral load and symptoms of polyomavirus-associated chronic interstitial cystitis after intravesical cidofovir treatment
In: Clinical Infectious Diseases, 2009, page e86-e88. * Vincent Tse, Jennifer King, Caroline Dowling, Sharon English, Katherine Gray, Richard Millard, Helen O'Connell, Samantha Pillay, Jeffrey Thavaseelan
Conjoint Urological Society of Australia and New Zealand (USANZ) and Urogynaecological Society of Australasia (UGSA) Guidelines on the management of adult non‐neurogenic overactive bladder
In: BJU international, 2016, page 34-47.
Professor Helen E. O'Connell – Urology
'

References

External links

*Professor O'Connell: Talk
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TEDx Talks 2020 {{DEFAULTSORT:OConnell, Helen 1962 births Australian academics Australian surgeons Australian urologists Living people Officers of the Order of Australia University of Melbourne alumni doctors