Professor Britta Regli-von Ungern-Sternberg recipient of the 2024 Frank Fenner Prize for Life Scientist of the Year.
Myron Yaster MD
Professor Britta Regli-von Ungern-Sternberg
Perth Children’s Hospital’s and The University of Western Australia’s Professor Britta Regli-von Ungern-Sternberg received the 2024 Frank Fenner Prize for Life Scientist of the Year.
Professor Regli-von Ungern-Sternberg is a consultant anaesthetist at the Perth Children’s Hospital and Chair of Paediatric Anaesthesia at The University of Western Australia. The prize recognises her life-changing research into reducing risks associated with anaesthesia for children, to make surgery and recovery safer.
One-quarter of a million children have surgery involving anaesthesia each year in Australia, and one in 7 experience breathing problems during surgery. Prof Regli-von Ungern-Sternberg’s research uncovered how to identify children at high-risk of breathing problems. This helped ensure vital operations were as safe and pain-free as possible.
Before her discovery, there was little research into the underlying physiological changes during the anaesthesia of children and infants.
Prof Regli-von Ungern-Sternberg’s research has directly led to clinical changes and improved safety in anaesthesia over the past decade. Her work is now part of international guidelines for paediatric anaesthesia.
Britta will be attending the annual meeting of the Society for Pediatric Anesthesia today in Philadelphia, join us in congratulating her!