October 5, 2026 – October 11, 2026
Weekly Roundup
25 resources from 7 sources were added to the FOAM Cortex library this week and are now indexed. Explore a selection below, with links to the original educators.
9 highlights · 6 featured sources
TTL tips 21: Catastrophic Bleeding from the midface
This TTL tip describes the "stacking" technique for catastrophic midface bleeding: a rescue sequence for intubated patients combining midface reduction, dental bite blocks, mandibular support, and bilateral nasal balloon tamponade. The article emphasises that sequence and preparation matter—airway first, then skeletal support, then balloon inflation—and that the technique is a temporary bridge requiring early senior anaesthetic and maxillofacial involvement.
Journal Feed Weekly Wrap-Up
Three studies: (1) A comparison found D10 and D50 equally effective for ED hypoglycemia, but D50 was associated with more rebound hypoglycemia, dextrose infusions, and ICU admissions. (2) Febrile infants ≤90 days without a detectable respiratory virus were more likely to have invasive bacterial infection than those with one. (3) In a small prospective observational study, TEE-guided chest compression positioning was associated with higher EtCO2 and ROSC rates.
Diagnosing Retained Products of Conception with PoCUS
A 2025 retrospective study by Boivin et al. found transabdominal PoCUS for retained products of conception (RPOC) had 79% sensitivity and 93.8% specificity, suggesting it functions better as a rule-in than rule-out tool. Key findings are endometrial thickness >10 mm, heterogeneous intrauterine material, and internal Doppler vascularity; absent flow does not exclude RPOC, and early pregnancy or fibroids can mimic these findings.
Amphetamine toxicity
This wiki-style reference entry on amphetamine toxicity outlines the sympathomimetic toxidrome, distinguishing mild features (hypertension, agitation, hyperthermia) from severe ones (cardiogenic shock, serotonin syndrome, rhabdomyolysis). It notes that MDMA carries hyponatremia risk, methamphetamine is more dysphoric and combative, and benzodiazepines are the listed management approach.
3 foot falls and other arbitrary cutoffs we use (Oishi 2026)
Oishi et al. (2026) conducted a retrospective single-center study of 1,893 children under 2 with head injuries, finding that fall height was continuously associated with clinically important TBI (OR 1.31 per 10 cm). The commentary argues this supports abandoning PECARN's arbitrary 3-foot cutoff, and that PECARN performs worse than clinical gestalt (Babl 2018); the study was underpowered for impact surface and likely affected by referral bias.
JC: IV or IO first in cardiac arrest? St Emlyn’s
An individual participant data meta-analysis of two RCTs (PARAMEDIC3 and IVIO; n=7,561 adult OHCA patients) found no statistically significant difference in 30-day survival or neurological outcome between IO-first and IV-first vascular access strategies, though a non-significant signal toward lower sustained ROSC with IO (OR 0.90) was consistent across both trials. Bayesian analysis suggested any survival difference is likely small; subgroup findings remain hypothesis-generating.
D10 or D50 for Hypoglycemia?
In this study of ED adults with hypoglycemia, D10 and D50 showed no difference in efficacy, but D50 was associated with higher rates of rebound hypoglycemia, subsequent dextrose infusions, and ICU admissions. Study design and full details were not available in the supplied content.
Synthetic cannabinoid toxicity
Synthetic cannabinoids (e.g., K2, Spice) act as potent CB1/CB2 agonists, do not appear on routine tox screens, and produce tachycardia and hypertension that help distinguish them from marijuana. Use has been associated with acute kidney injury, cerebral ischemia, and—when products are contaminated with brodifacoum—serious coagulopathy; management is supportive, with benzodiazepines or antipsychotics for severe agitation.
Which patients with chest pain need a troponin test?
A St Emlyn's podcast with Prof. Rick Body reviews prospective studies showing that "atypical" pain descriptors, absence of conventional cardiovascular risk factors, and clinical gestalt each perform poorly at ruling out AMI—one study found 12.2% of patients with no risk factors still had MI. The evidence supports using validated high-sensitivity troponin pathways whenever ACS remains plausible, rather than relying on reassuring labels.
New to the library does not necessarily mean newly published. This roundup features public resources added during the week and successfully indexed by the time the issue was prepared. Follow the links to read or listen at the original source.