Biography
- Attending Physician, Division of Orthopaedic Surgery and Sports Medicine, Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago
- Instructor of Orthopaedic Surgery, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
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Brett R. Lullo, MD, is an attending pediatric orthopaedic surgeon at Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago and instructor of orthopaedic surgery at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. He graduated from Princeton University with a degree in Computer Science, followed by medical school at Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine. He completed orthopaedic surgery residency at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, performing pediatric rotations at Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles and Shriners Children's Hospital Pasadena. Dr. Lullo acquired advanced training in spine deformity and extremity fracture surgery during his pediatric orthopaedic surgery fellowship at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.
Originally from Naperville, Dr. Lullo has always had a passion for working with children with disabilities. He saw first-hand during a college summer internship in the motion lab at Lurie Children’s just how pediatric orthopedic surgeons can positively influence and affect the lives of children with disabilities. During his fellowship at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, he witnessed the severity of disability that children with spinal deformities can have, and he has made it a goal to serve those children and their families.
Given his background in computer science, Dr. Lullo hopes to leverage technology to enhance pediatric care, using machine learning and data science techniques to support future orthopaedic research. He currently serves on the Technology Oversight Committee of the Pediatric Orthopaedic Society of North America (POSNA). Dr. Lullo has presented research at the Pediatric Orthopedic Society of North America (POSNA), Scoliosis Research Society (SRS), and the International Congress for Early Onset Scoliosis and the Growing Spine (ICEOS).
His wife is also a Chicagoland native and a dermatologist. They met as children swimming on the same Naperville club swim team, reconnecting years later as medical school classmates. Together they spend their free time hiking through all the National Parks and Forests they can.
Education and Background
- Fellowship in Pediatric Orthopaedic Surgery, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia 2021–2022
- Residency in Orthopaedic Surgery, Harbor-UCLA Medical Center 2017–2021
- Internship in Orthopaedic Surgery, Medical College of Wisconsin 2016–2017
- MD, Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine 2016
Research Highlights
INCIDENCE OF TETHER BREAKAGE IN ANTERIOR VERTEBRAL BODY TETHERING
Fusionless surgery for scoliosis is on the rise after FDA approval in 2019 with an ultimate goal of preserving motion throughout the spine while still being able to prevent progression of scoliosis. Patients and families are interested in having the procedure, and more and more surgeons are interested in performing the surgery. But the procedure is still in its infancy and the short- and long-term outcomes are still being evaluated. Tether breakage is a common complication of anterior vertebral body tethering, but we don't fully understand the rate at which it happens and its effect on patient outcomes. This study set out to determine the incidence of tether breakage and its effect on scoliosis correction and need for revision surgery.
This study demonstrated that 50% of patients who undergo anterior vertebral body tethering are expected to experience tether breakage by 3 years post-operatively. Additionally, patients who sustain a tether breakage have overall less correction of their scoliosis long-term and experience conversion to posterior spinal fusion more often than those who do not. We hope to expand upon our work by examining a larger set of curve patterns and further elucidate which patients are more at risk for tether breakage, in hopes of modifying factors to decrease the rate of tether breakage in the future.
