Dr Ettienne Coetzee

Peadiatric Anaesthetist and Neurobiology Researcher, Department of Anaesethsia and Perioperative Medicine and Red Cross War Memorial Children's Hospital

Research Interests

PACSA (Paediatric anaesthesia community of South Africa - past-president). We are establishing the UCT-PEARL (Perioperative EEG and Anaesthesia Research Library), a multi-centre database spanning Red Cross War Memorial Children's and Groote Schuur Hospitals. This project systematically collects anonymised Density Spectral Array (DSA) images and raw EEG recordings, linking them with key clinical variables such as drug dosing, patient age, and comorbidities. By curating this data from both paediatric and adult populations, we aim to investigate how different anaesthetic agents influence EEG signatures. This research seeks to identify markers of "fragile brains" and optimise anaesthetic dosing strategies to improve patient safety.

This bridges the conceptual domains of Brain Development and Brain Injuries through a longitudinal database spanning paediatric to adult. Utilizing monitoring (frontal EEG) we aim to mitigate injury and personalise care for at-risk brains. The project directly addresses the critical question on measurement by validating global EEG indices within a diverse African population to reduce bias.

Research Areas

Clinical Neuroscience • Developmental Neuroscience • Computational Neuroscience • Neurophysiology and Neuroanatomy • Neuroethics