Why You Should Hire a Birth Defect Lawyer

If your child was born with a birth defect this can cause a lot of grief for the entire family. Therapy costs, medical bills and other expenses can quickly mount up.

A Hyattsville birth defect lawyer could assist you in filing claim for compensation for the cost of taking care of your disabled child. Legal claims for birth defects are complicated, so it is important to seek legal advice as soon as you can.

Medical Malpractice

Medical professionals must adhere to a standard of care when treating pregnant women and their babies. If a doctor's actions are not in line with this standard and result in a birth defect or injury or injury, they could be held responsible for damage suffered by their patient. A DC lawyer with experience in lawsuits for birth defects can help you determine if your child's health condition may be due to an error in medical care during pregnancy or during delivery.

A doctor may also be held accountable for birth injuries if they fail detect fetal distress or do not respond appropriately. This could lead to many serious problems like hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy and brain injuries such as cerebral palsy.

The difference between birth defects and birth injury is that defects are part of a person's genetic make-up, while injuries are caused by something occurring during labor, pregnancy or birth. The most common injuries are Erb's Palsy where the nerves that control the baby's arms and limbs are stretched or torn. Another injury is the caput succedaneum, swelling of the scalp. Both of these conditions can result in permanent disability and require ongoing treatment, resulting in large medical bills. A Washington, DC birth defect lawyer can provide a free initial consultation to look over your situation and determine the best option for you and your child.

Prescription Drugs

A birth defect lawyer may be able to help parents determine the cause of the child's birth injury or defect. While many birth defects are due to the genetics of the mother's pregnancy, they can also occur as a result of medications. Many common medications have a profound effect on fetuses, particularly in the first trimester of pregnancy. These include anti-nausea medications such as NSAIDs, chemotherapy medicines as well as certain antibiotics, and more. These drugs have been linked with an increased risk of deformities in the limbs and brain defects, heart defects and craniosynostois.

It is the duty of a doctor to take into consideration the potential risks when prescribing medications for women who are pregnant. If doctors fail to adhere to this standard of care, they could be held accountable for negligence. Pharma companies could also be held responsible for not properly inform mothers of the risks associated with their medications. For example, Zofran, a medication used to treat nausea in cancer patients, has been proven to significantly increase the risk of major congenital problems in the first trimester of a pregnancy.

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

Chemical Exposure

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

Some of the chemical exposures that contribute to birth defects include the use of fungicides and metals as well as herbicides and other pesticides. These chemicals are referred to as Teratogens as they interfere with the development of the fetus making chemical changes that inhibit normal cell function or cause organs that are not properly formed. These chemicals are found in diverse settings like the manufacturing of semiconductors, metal cleaning and paint production.

Other hazardous chemicals that could cause birth defects are aliphatic hydrocarbons with aliphatic chlorinated chemistry such as perchloroethylene, trichloroethylene and dichloroethane. These chemicals have been proven to cause heart defects in babies born to mothers who were exposed in the womb.

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

Environmental Exposure

Some birth defects can be caused by an unintended medical error and environmental factors or chemicals. If a family suspects that a child's birth defect attorney defects may be the result of medical negligence, prescription drug overdose, or exposure to harmful chemicals and/or environmental factors, they should talk to a DC birth injury lawyer to discuss their case.

Chemicals and other contaminants in the environment can cause birth defects of a serious nature when they are consumed or taken in by pregnant women. These substances are referred to as teratogens. More than 4 million chemicals are present in our food, air and water and some can be harmful if they come into contact with a woman who is pregnant.

For instance, arsenic from drinking water and cadmium in coal that is contaminated can cause a variety of birth defects, as well as other health issues. Industrial solvents, such as benzene, toluene and trichloroethylene (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 in women. These chemicals are used in the production of semiconductors display panels, silicon chip displays, and video displays.

LK's highly experienced birth defect lawyers have filed numerous lawsuits on behalf of children who suffer from a myriad of birth defects as a result of wrongful toxic and chemical exposure at workplaces or at home. These lawsuits typically involve sophisticated scientific analysis and experts, such as toxicologists, epidemiologists, geneticists, embryologists and occupational medicine experts.