Bryan Patrick O'connell M.D.

What is leptin?Leptin has been regarded as the "fat hormone", "obesity hormone", and in some cases, called the "starvation hormone". Scientists discovered leptin in the year 1994, and with its discovery, there was a lot of excitement since it was regarded as a potential hit product for weight loss...

Ever heard of the saying, "Don't judge a book by its cover"? You might want to rethink it. This new study that includes more than 100 college students argues that looking at a person's appearance can help understand a few of their personality traits. The college students that participated in the...

Many people are now turning to nutritional supplements for pain management, as they become less tolerant towards the side effects of pain medications. Physicians also seem to be attracted by the idea of using supplements and recommend one or the other to their patients. Supplements may be vitamins,...

What is gout in knee?Gout in knee is an inflammatory condition that causes swelling and pain in the knee joints. In the US, approximately 1-2 people in every 100 suffer from gout. Men are more likely to be affected by this condition than women with a peak-incidence age of 75. There are recurrent...

As the urinary bladder fills, the sensation to release urine gradually builds up. Few people have a continuous urge to ease the bladder while experiencing pain. This situation, called bladder spasms, may lead to wetting one's pants. Bladder spasms are caused by the muscles of the bladder contracting...

The mumps is a viral infection of the parotid glands, the saliva producing glands present within the cheek in front of the ears. The infection often results in the swelling of the parotid glands. This contagious infection was contained to a large extent after the introduction of the mumps...