Why You Should Hire a Birth Defect Lawyer

If your child was born with a birth defect this can have a devastating impact on you and your family. The cost of therapy, medical bills and other losses can quickly add up.

A Hyattsville lawyer that specializes in birth defects could help you file for compensation to cover the costs of caring for your children with disabilities. Legal claims for birth defects are complicated and therefore it is crucial to seek legal advice whenever you can.

Medical Malpractice

Medical professionals must follow a standard of care when treating pregnant women and their infants. Doctors can be held liable for damages when their actions cause birth defects or injuries. A DC lawyer with expertise in lawsuits for birth defects can determine whether your child's health issue was caused by a medical mistake during pregnancy or the birth.

A doctor may also be responsible for a birth injury when they fail to diagnose or respond adequately to distress of the fetus. This can cause a number of serious issues, such as hypoxic ischemic disorder (HIE) and brain injuries, such as cerebral palsy.

The difference between birth defects and birth injury is that defects are a part of a person's genetic make-up and injuries are triggered by something occurring during pregnancy, labor, or during delivery. These injuries can be caused by conditions like Erb's Palsy which develops when the nerves that energize and control the arms of a newborn are stretched or torn during the birth process as well as caput succedaneum which is a swelling of the scalp. Both can result in lifelong disability, and ongoing treatment will cost a lot of money. A Washington, DC birth defect lawyer can provide a free initial consultation to analyze your case and determine the best course of action for you and your child.

Prescription Drugs

A birth defect lawyer could be able to help parents identify the cause of a child's birth injury or defect. Many birth defects result from genes or other factors that occur during pregnancy. However, medications can also cause birth defects. A number of commonly used medications have a profound effect on fetuses and babies, particularly during the first trimester of pregnancy. Anti-nausea drugs, NSAIDs, and chemotherapy medications are among the most common. These drugs have been linked to an increased chance of limb deformities, 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 adhere to this standard of care, they could be held accountable for malpractice. Pharma companies can also be held responsible for not properly inform mothers of the risks of their medication. Zofran is a medication used to treat nausea in cancer patients, has been shown to increase the risk of major defects in the first trimester pregnancy.

A birth defect lawyer can assist a family in obtaining compensation for medical expenses, loss of income and quality of life. This could include doctor's, hospital, pharmaceutical, and other expenses, as well aidive devices and treatments.

Chemical Exposure

A birth defect lawyer may sue families of children who suffer from congenital disabilities because due to the negligence of corporations exposing pregnant women to chemicals and drugs that can cause birth defects. They are trained to identify the cause of birth defects so that they can file a lawsuit against companies who expose pregnant women to teratogens either at work or at home.

Metals, fungicides, herbicides, and pesticides are just a few of the chemicals that can cause birth defects. These chemicals are known as teratogens due to their impact on the growth of the fetus making chemical changes that inhibit normal cell function or cause organs that are malformed. These chemicals can be found in a variety of situations, such as processing of semiconductors and metal cleaning.

Other chemicals that can cause birth defects include aliphatic cyaninated hydrocarbons such as perchloroethylene, trichloroethylene or dichloroethane. These chemicals are known to cause birth defects in the heart in babies born to mothers exposed in the womb.

Parents have filed lawsuits against several companies that were involved in exposing the families of soldiers at Camp Lejeune to these harmful chemicals. Some of these birth defect lawyers have obtained significant settlements for families whose children were born with severe defects because of the toxic chemical exposures at the base.

Environmental Exposure

Some birth defects can be caused by an unintended medical error as well as environmental conditions or chemicals. If a family suspects that the birth defects of a baby could be the result of medical negligence or prescription drug overdose or exposure to harmful chemical or chemical substances, they should speak with an DC birth injury attorney to discuss their case.

If pregnant women consume or absorb pollutants from the environment They could cause serious birth defects. Teratogens is the name given to these substances. More than 4 million chemicals are found in our air, food and water. Some of these chemicals are harmful to pregnant women.

Arsenic found in drinking water or cadmium in contaminated coal, for example, can cause birth defects as well as other health problems. Certain birth defects are also linked to industrial solvents like benzene (a metal degreaser) and toluene (a solvent for plastics) and trichloroethylene. Glycol-ethers also increase the chance of birth defects in women. These chemicals are used to manufacture semiconductors, silicon chip displays and video displays.

LK's highly experienced birth defect lawyers have filed a variety of lawsuits on behalf of children who suffer from a variety of birth defects due to unintentional exposure to toxic chemicals and chemicals at workplaces or at home. These lawsuits require complex scientific analyses and expert witnesses, such as toxicologists and epidemiologists.