#FOAM

A hemothorax most commonly occurs secondary to penetrating or blunt chest wall trauma, with up to 70-80% of hemothoraces due to motor vehicle collisions. These injuries can cause rapid decompensation, but diagnosis and management isn’t always easy. This post is filled with pearls and pitfalls in diagnosis and management of massive hemothorax.

Though many obstetric complications occur during pregnancy, the pregnant woman is still a woman with all her other organs that can be at risk, regardless of her pregnancy status. Typically, patients with obstetric complications will complain of uterine tenderness, vaginal bleeding and may have abnormal fetal heart tones on monitoring. When signs and symptoms do not support an obstetric cause for the patient’s abdominal pain, it is imperative that the differential is still wide for all other causes.

“Poison is in everything, and no thing is without poison. The dosage makes it either a poison or a remedy.”
– Paracelsus

Toxicology is an ever-growing field. Staying up to date can be difficult, but FOAMed comes to the rescue again! Welcome to Part IV of the FOAMed Resource Series.

The patient with GSW can present in a variety of states ranging from hemodynamic stability to loss of pulses. Several literature updates have evaluated specific components of the care of these patients including airway, breathing, hemorrhage control, thoracotomy, and REBOA. This post evaluates the updated literature and provides pearls and pitfalls in the care of these potentially sick patients.

“Kids are not just little adults.” While this statement generates controversy, a sick pediatric patient in the ED can be scary. Staying up to date with the most current pediatric EM literature can be difficult, but FOAMed can help. Welcome to Part III of the FOAMed series, where we will cover pediatric EM resources.

Drug abuse, whether of illicit or prescription drugs, is currently an epidemic. Patients may go into withdrawal, which can be dangerous. This is the second of a two-part series covering withdrawal states. Our first post evaluated the diagnosis and management of alcohol withdrawal. Today’s will cover opioids, benzos, cocaine, amphetamines, and caffeine.

Pharyngitis accounts for a large number of Emergency Department and Urgent Care visits each year. The majority of cases are due to a viral etiology, and Group A Beta-hemolytic streptococcus accounts for 15% to 30% of cases. However, a wide array of diseases may present similarly, with several of these potentially life-threatening. This post looks at these mimics and more.

FOAMed has revolutionized medical education. This is the second part of a multipart series evaluating FOAMed resources for learners of all levels. Today’s post covers ultrasound, an essential tool in emergency medicine.

SBP is a hallmark of advanced liver disease with mortality estimates of 31.5% at 1 month and 66.2% at 12 months! With mortality rates that high, here are some ED management pearls about which emergency physicians should be aware.

What’s the literature behind using ultrasound for retained foreign bodies in soft tissue, and how do you do it? Read on for more!