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 expenses can quickly mount up.

A Hyattsville birth defect lawyer can help you file an action to collect compensation for the cost of taking care of your disabled child. A legal claim for birth defects may be complex, so you should consult a lawyer immediately.

Medical Malpractice

Medical professionals must follow the highest standards of care when treating pregnant women and their babies. If a doctor's actions fall below this standard and result in a birth defect or injury or injury, they could be held accountable for the damage suffered by their patient. A DC lawyer with experience in lawsuits for birth defects can assist you in determining whether your child's condition may have been caused by an error made by the medical professional during the pregnancy or delivery.

A doctor can be held accountable for birth injuries if they fail to identify fetal distress, or don't respond appropriately. This can cause a number of serious complications, including hypoxic ischemic brain injury (HIE) and brain injuries, such as cerebral palsy.

Birth injuries differ from birth defects in the sense that they are caused by circumstances during pregnancy, delivery or labor. Injuries can be caused by Erb's palsy, where the nerves controlling the baby's arms and limbs are stretched or torn. Another form of injury is caput succedaneum - an inflammation of the scalp. Both can result in permanent disability, and ongoing treatment will cost a great deal of money. A Washington, DC lawyer who is an expert in birth defects may provide a free consultation to analyze your case and decide on the best course for you and your baby.

Prescription Drugs

A birth defect lawyer might be able to help parents determine the cause of the birth injury or defect. While many birth defects are caused by genetics and the factors that influence a mother's pregnancy but they can also happen due to medications. Many commonly used medications can have negative effects on foetuses. This is particularly evident in the initial three months of pregnancy. Anti-nausea medication, NSAIDs and chemotherapy drugs are among the most commonly used. These drugs have been linked to a higher chance of limb deformities, brain defects, heart defects and craniosynostosis.

A doctor's duty is to consider these risks when prescribing medication for women who are pregnant. If doctors do not follow this standard of care, then they could be held accountable for malpractice. Pharma companies can also be held responsible for not properly informing mothers about the dangers associated with their medication. For instance, Zofran, a medication used to treat nausea in cancer patients, has been shown to significantly increase the risk of congenital defects that are major in the first trimester of pregnancy.

A birth defect lawyer can help a family receive reimbursement for future and ongoing medical expenses associated with the disability or injury, as well as loss of earnings and quality of life. This can include doctor's, hospital pharmaceutical, and other costs, as well as aidive devices and treatments.

Chemical Exposure

A birth defect lawyer can bring a lawsuit on behalf of families of children with congenital disabilities resulting from the negligence of companies that expose pregnant women chemicals or drugs that cause birth defects. They are trained to discover what caused the birth defect in order to bring a lawsuit against companies that expose mothers to teratogens as they work or in their homes.

Metals, fungicides herbicides and pesticides are just a few of the chemicals that can cause birth defects. These chemicals are known as teratogens because they affect the growth of the fetus producing chemical changes that block normal cell function or lead to organs to be malformed. These chemicals can be found in a variety of settings, including processing of semiconductors and metal cleaning.

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

Parents have filed lawsuits in order to ensure that companies are held accountable for exposing families of soldiers at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, to harmful chemicals. Some of the birth defect lawyers have gotten significant settlements on behalf of families who had their children born with severe defects because of the toxic chemical exposures at the base.

Environmental Exposure

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

Chemicals and other substances in the environment can cause birth defects of a serious nature when they are consumed or absorbed by pregnant women. Teratogens are the name for these substances. More than 4 million chemicals can be found in our air, food and water. Some of these chemicals are dangerous to pregnant women.

For example, arsenic in drinking water, and cadmium from coal that is contaminated may cause a variety of birth defects and health problems. Industrial solvents like trichloroethylene, toluene, and benzene (a metal degreaser) are also linked to certain birth defects. Glycol-ethers are also known for their ability to increase the likelihood of birth defects occurring in women. These chemicals are used in the production of semiconductors as well as silicon chip displays and video displays.

LK's experienced birth defect attorneys have filed a variety of lawsuits on behalf of children who have suffered from a variety of birth defects due to wrongful toxic and chemical exposure at workplaces or at home. These lawsuits involve complex scientific analyses and expert witnesses like toxicologists and epidemiologists.