Why You Should Hire a Birth Defect Lawyer

If your child is born with a birth deformity, it can cause a lot of grief for you and your entire family. Medical bills, therapy expenses and other losses can quickly add up.

A Hyattsville birth defect lawyer could assist you in filing a claim to recover reimbursement for the costs of taking care of your child with disabilities. Legal claims for birth defects are a bit nebulous and therefore it is crucial to seek legal advice whenever you can.

Medical Malpractice

Medical professionals must adhere to the highest standards of care when treating pregnant women and their babies. If the actions of a doctor fall below this standard and cause laurel birth defect law firm defects or injuries and/or death, they may be held accountable for the injuries suffered by their patient. A DC lawyer who has expertise in lawsuits involving birth defects can determine if your child's condition was caused by a medical mistake during pregnancy or the birth.

A doctor may be liable for an injury that occurs during birth if they fail to recognize or appropriately respond to distress in the fetus. This can result in a number serious problems including hypoxic-ischemic neuropathy and brain injuries such as cerebral palsy.

The difference between a birth defect and a birth injury is that defects are part of a person's genetic makeup, while injuries are caused by something occurring during labor, pregnancy or delivery. A possible injury is Erb's spalsy which occurs when the nerves that control the infant's arms and legs are stretched or attorneys torn. Another type of injury is caput succedaneum which is an increase in the size of the scalp. Both of these could lead to lifelong disability and require ongoing treatment, resulting in hefty medical costs. A Washington, DC birth defect lawyer will provide a no-cost initial consultation to review your situation and determine the best method of action for you and your child.

Prescription Drugs

A birth defect lawyer may help parents determine the root cause of an infant's birth injury. While many birth defects are the result of the genetics of the pregnancy of a mother however, they may also occur due to medications. A variety of commonly used medications can have negative effects on foetuses. This is especially applicable in the early months of pregnancy. Anti-nausea medication, NSAIDs and chemotherapy drugs are among the most frequently used. These medications have been linked to an increased chance of limb deformities, brain defects, heart defects and craniosynostois.

It is the professional responsibility of doctors to take into consideration the potential risks when prescribing medications for pregnant women. If doctors fail to follow this standard of care, they could be held accountable for malpractice. Pharmaceutical companies could be held liable as well for not properly warning mothers of the risks associated with their medications. Zofran is a medication used to treat nausea among cancer patients, was found to increase the risk of major defects during the first trimester pregnancies.

A birth defect lawyer can help families receive compensation for the future and present medical expenses associated with the disability or injury, and also loss of earnings and the quality of life. This can include hospital costs as well as doctor's fees, pharmaceutical costs, and other expenses, along with assistive devices and therapy.

Chemical Exposure

A birth defect lawyer can file a lawsuit on behalf families of children with congenital disabilities resulting from the negligence of companies who expose pregnant women chemicals or drugs that cause birth defects. These lawyers are specially trained to identify the cause of the birth defects so that they can bring a suit against companies who expose pregnant women to teratogens either at workplace or at home.

Some of the exposures to chemicals that lead to birth defects are metals, fungicides, herbicides and other pesticides. These chemicals are known as teratogens, because they can affect the healthy development a embryo through chemical changes that cause abnormal organs or hinder normal cell function. These chemicals can be present in a variety locations, such as metal cleaning and semiconductor manufacturing.

Other dangerous chemicals that may cause birth defects are aliphatic chlorinated hydrocarbons such as trichloroethylene, perchloroethylene and dichloroethane. These chemicals have been found to cause birth defects, including cardiac defects, in babies born to mothers who were exposed to them during the womb.

Parents have filed lawsuits in order to ensure that companies are held accountable for the families of soldiers who live at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, to harmful chemicals. Some of these birth defects lawyers have won substantial settlements for families that had children born with severe birth defects due to the exposure to toxic chemicals at the base.

Environmental Exposure

Some birth defects are caused by a combination of medical negligence and environmental factors or chemicals. If a family suspects that the birth defects of a child may be due to medical negligence, prescription drug overdose, or exposure to harmful chemical and/or environmental factors, they should talk to an DC birth injury lawyer to discuss their case.

Chemicals and other toxins in the environment can cause birth defects of a serious nature if they are ingested or absorbed by pregnant women. Teratogens are the term used to describe these chemicals. More than 4 million chemicals can be found in our air, food and water. Certain of these chemicals are harmful to pregnant women.

For instance, arsenic found in drinking water as well as cadmium derived from coal that is contaminated can cause a variety of birth defects, as well as other health issues. Industrial solvents such as trichloroethylene, benzene, and toluene (a metal degreaser) are also linked with certain birth defects. Glycol-ethers are also known for their ability to increase the risk of birth defects among women. These chemicals are used to make semiconductors, silicon chip displays and video displays.

LK's experienced birth defect attorneys have brought numerous lawsuits on behalf of children who have suffered from a myriad of birth defects resulting from unintentional exposure to toxic chemicals and chemicals at work or in their homes. These lawsuits typically require complicated scientific analysis and expert witnesses, including toxicologists and epidemiologists, geneticists, occupational medicine experts and embryologists.