Why You Should Hire a Birth Defect Lawyer

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

A Hyattsville birth defect lawyer can assist you in filing claim for compensation for the costs of taking care of your child with disabilities. A legal claim for birth defects can be complex, so you should consult with a legal professional as soon as you can.

Medical Malpractice

Medical professionals must adhere to a certain standard when treating pregnant women or their babies. If a doctor's actions are not in line with this standard and cause a birth defect or injury and/or death, they may be held responsible for harms suffered by their patient. A DC lawyer who has experience in birth defect lawsuits can assist you in determining whether your child's health issue was caused by a medical mistake during pregnancy or during delivery.

A doctor may also be responsible for an injury that occurs during birth if they fail to diagnose or adequately respond to fetal distress. This can cause a number of serious complications, including hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) and cerebral palsy.

The distinction between birth defects and birth injury is that defects are a part of a person's genetic makeup and injuries are triggered by an event that occurs during labor, pregnancy or birth. The causes of injuries include conditions like Erb's Palsy that occurs when the nerves that power and control an infant's arms are stretched or ruptured during birth as well as caput succedaneum which is an increase in the size of the scalp. Both can lead to a lifelong disability, and ongoing treatment will cost lots of money. A Washington, DC lawyer who is an expert in birth defects may offer a free consultation to look over your case and determine the best course for you and your baby.

Prescription Drugs

An attorney for birth defects may be able to assist parents in determining the cause for a child's birth defect. While many birth defects are due to genetics and other factors that occur during the pregnancy of a mother however, they may also occur because of medications. A number of common medications can have a negative impact on the fetuses. This is particularly relevant in the first three months of pregnancy. Anti-nausea drugs, NSAIDs, and chemotherapy drugs are among the most frequently used. These drugs have been found to increase the risk of limb and heart defects, brain deformities and craniosynostois.

A doctor's responsibility is to be aware of these risks when prescribing medication for pregnant women. If doctors do not meet this standard of care they could be held accountable for medical negligence. Pharmaceutical companies could be held liable as well for not properly warning mothers of the dangers associated with their medications. Zofran is a drug used to treat nausea among cancer patients, was shown to increase the risk of major Birth defect lawsuits defects occurring in first-trimester pregnancy.

An attorney who specializes in birth defects can help a family get compensation for medical expenses, income loss and quality of living. This can include doctor's, hospital or pharmaceutical expenses, as well as assistive devices and therapies.

Chemical Exposure

A birth defect lawyer may bring a lawsuit on behalf of families of children who suffer from congenital disabilities that result from the negligence of companies that expose pregnant women to chemicals or drugs that cause birth defects. These lawyers are specially trained to determine the reason for birth defects, so that they can bring a case against companies that expose pregnant women to teratogens either at work or in their home.

Some of the exposures to chemicals that lead to birth defects include the use of fungicides and metals as well as herbicides and other pesticides. These chemicals are known as Teratogens as they interfere with the healthy development of the fetus making chemical changes that inhibit normal cell function, or can cause malformed organs. These chemicals are present in various settings, including manufacturing of semiconductors, cleaning of metals and paint production.

Other dangerous chemicals that may cause birth defects include aliphatic cyaninated hydrocarbons such as trichloroethylene, perchloroethylene and dichloroethane. These chemicals have been shown to cause birth problems, including cardiac defects in babies born to mothers exposed to them while in the womb.

Parents have filed lawsuits to make companies accountable for the families of soldiers who live at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, birth defect Lawsuits to harmful chemicals. Some of these birth defect attorney defect lawyers have won substantial settlements for families who had children born with serious defects as a result of the toxic chemical exposures on the base.

Environmental Exposure

Some birth defects can be caused by a combination between medical negligence and environmental factors. If a family suspects that the birth defects of a child could be due to medical negligence, prescription drug overdose, or exposure to harmful chemical such as benzene, they should seek out a DC birth injury lawyer to discuss their case.

If pregnant women ingest or absorb contaminants from the environment, they can cause serious birth defects. These substances are referred to as teratogens. More than 4 million chemicals exist in our air, food and water and some can be harmful if they come into contact with pregnant women.

For instance, arsenic in drinking water, and cadmium from coal that is contaminated may cause various birth defects as well as other health problems. Industrial solvents such as benzene toluene and trichloroethylene (a metal degreaser) are also associated with certain birth defects. Glycol-ethers also increase the risk of birth defects in women. These chemicals are used to manufacture semiconductors display panels, silicon chip displays, and video displays.

The experienced lawyers at LK for birth defects have filed a variety of lawsuits in behalf of children suffering from a variety of birth defects due to wrongful toxic or chemical exposure at their workplace or home. These lawsuits are based on complex scientific analyses and expert witnesses like toxicologists and epidemiologists.