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 your family as well as you. Medical bills, therapy costs and other losses can quickly increase.

A Hyattsville birth defect lawyer can help you file a claim to recover compensation for the cost of taking care of your child with disabilities. Legal claims for birth defects can be a little tangled and therefore it is crucial to seek legal advice as soon as you can.

Medical Malpractice

Medical professionals must adhere to an appropriate standard of care when treating pregnant women and their infants. Doctors can be held accountable for damages if their actions result in birth defects or injuries. A DC lawyer with experience in lawsuits for birth defects can help you determine if your child's illness could be the result of an error made by the medical professional during pregnancy or the birth.

A doctor may also be held responsible for birth injuries if they fail diagnose fetal distress or fail to respond appropriately. This can lead to a range of serious problems, including hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) and brain injuries like cerebral palsy.

Birth injuries differ from birth defects in that they are caused by events during pregnancy, birth, or labor. The causes of injuries include conditions such as Erb's palsy which is caused when the nerves that power and control the arms of a newborn are stretched or torn during the birth process, and caput succedaneum, an increase in the size of the scalp. Both can result in a lifelong disability, and ongoing treatment will cost lots of money. A Washington, DC birth defect lawyer will provide a no-cost initial consultation to analyze your case and determine the best method of action for you and your child.

Prescription Drugs

A birth defect lawyer may be able to help parents identify the root of a child's birth injury or defect. Many birth defects are caused by the genetics of the baby or other factors during pregnancy. However, certain medications can also cause birth defects. A variety of common medications can have a significant impact on fetuses, especially in the first trimester of pregnancy. Anti-nausea medication, NSAIDs and chemotherapy drugs are among the most frequently used. These drugs have been linked to a higher chance of limb deformities, heart defects, brain deformities and craniosynostosis.

The duty of a doctor is to be aware of the risks when prescribing medications for pregnant women. If doctors fail to follow this standard of care, they may be held liable for negligence. Pharma companies can also be held responsible for not adequately informing mothers about the dangers associated with their medication. Zofran is a medication used to treat nausea in cancer patients, was found to increase the risk of major defects occurring in first-trimester pregnancies.

A birth defect lawyer can help family members receive compensation for the future and present medical expenses related to the injury or disability, and also loss of income and quality of life. This could include hospital fees, doctor's fees, pharmaceutical costs, and other expenses, as well assistive devices and therapy.

Chemical Exposure

A birth defect lawyer may bring an action on behalf of families of children with congenital disabilities resulting from the negligence of businesses that expose pregnant women to chemicals or drugs that cause birth defects. These lawyers are specially trained to discover the root of the birth defect so that they can sue companies that expose mothers to teratogens as they are at work or in their homes.

Some of the chemical exposures that can lead to birth defects are metals, fungicides, herbicides and other pesticides. These chemicals are known as Teratogens as they interfere with the development of the fetus through causing chemical changes that prevent normal cell function, or can cause organs to be malformed. These chemicals are used in a variety of settings including the manufacturing of semiconductors, metal cleaning and paint production.

Other harmful chemicals that could cause birth defects are aliphatic chlorinated hydrocarbons such as perchloroethylene, trichloroethylene or dichloroethane. These chemicals are known to cause birth defects in the heart in babies born to mothers exposed during their time in the womb.

Parents have filed lawsuits against various companies involved in exposing the families of soldiers at Camp Lejeune to these harmful chemicals. Some of the birth defect lawyers have secured substantial settlements on behalf of families who had their children born with serious defects as a result of exposure to toxic chemicals at the base.

Environmental Exposure

Certain birth defects can be caused by a combination of medical negligence and environmental factors or chemicals. If a family is concerned that the birth defect of their child could result from medical negligence, prescription drug abuse or exposure to harmful chemicals, they should talk to an DC birth injury lawyer to discuss the issue.

If pregnant women ingest or absorb contaminants from the surrounding environment They could cause serious birth defects. Teratogens are the term used to describe these substances. More than 4 million chemicals are present in our food, air and water and a few are harmful if they come into contact with a woman who is pregnant.

Arsenic in drinking water or cadmium in coal that has been contaminated for instance, may cause birth defects as well as other health problems. Certain birth defects are also caused by industrial solvents such as benzene (a metal degreaser), toluene (a solvent for plastics) and trichloroethylene. Glycol ethers, which are used in the production of semiconductors, silicon chips and video displays are recognized to increase a woman's risk of developing birth defects too.

LK's highly experienced birth defect lawyers have brought many lawsuits on behalf of children suffering from a variety of birth defects caused by wrongful toxic and chemical exposure at workplaces or at home. These lawsuits usually involve a complex scientific analysis and expert witnesses, including toxicologists as well as epidemiologists, geneticists occupational medicine experts and embryologists.