Why You Should Hire a Birth Defect Lawyer

If your child was born with an anomaly in the birth, it can be devastating for you and your family. Medical bills, therapy expenses and other losses can quickly mount up.

A Hyattsville lawyer who is specialized in birth defects could assist to file a claim for compensation for the costs of caring for your disabled children. A legal claim for birth defects can be complicated, and you should seek legal counsel whenever you can.

Medical Malpractice

Medical professionals must adhere to a certain standard when treating pregnant women or their babies. When a doctor's actions do not meet the standards and result in birth defect or injury, they can be held accountable for the damage suffered by their patient. A DC lawyer who has experience in lawsuits for birth defects will help you determine if your child's illness could have been caused by an error made by a doctor during pregnancy or delivery.

A doctor could 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 issues, such as hypoxic ischemic disorder (HIE) and brain injuries like cerebral palsy.

Birth injuries differ from birth defects in the sense that they are caused by events during pregnancy, delivery, or labor. These injuries can be caused by conditions such as Erb's palsy, which occurs when the nerves that power and control an infant's arms are stretched or ruptured during birth and the caput succedaneum is an increase in the size of the scalp. Both of them can cause permanent disability and require ongoing treatment, resulting in significant medical bills. A Washington, DC birth defect lawyer can provide a free initial consultation to review your situation and determine the best method of action for you and your child.

Prescription Drugs

A birth defect lawyer might be able to assist parents determine the reason for the birth injury or defect. While many birth defects are caused by the genetics of a mother's pregnancy however, they can also be caused as a result of medications. A variety of common medications can have a profound effect on fetuses, particularly in the first trimester of pregnancy. These include anti-nausea drugs and NSAIDs as well as chemotherapy medications, certain antibiotics, and many more. These drugs have been proven to increase the risk of limb and brain defects, heart defects and craniosynostosis.

The duty of a doctor is to consider these risks when prescribing medication for pregnant women. If doctors fail to adhere to this standard of care, then they may be held liable for negligence. Pharma companies may also be held accountable for not properly informing mothers of the risks of their medication. For instance, Zofran, a medication used to treat nausea in cancer patients, has been shown to significantly increase the risk of major congenital problems in the first trimester of pregnancies.

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

Chemical Exposure

A birth defect lawyer could file a lawsuit on behalf of parents of children with congenital disabilities as a result of the negligence of businesses who expose pregnant women to chemicals and drugs that can cause birth defects. These lawyers are specially trained to determine what caused the birth defect in order to bring a lawsuit against the companies which expose mothers to teratogens when they are at work or in their home.

Metals, fungicides, herbicides and pesticides are among the chemicals that can cause birth defects. These chemicals are referred to as teratogens due to their impact on the development of the fetus through making chemical changes that inhibit normal cell function, or can cause malformed organs. These chemicals can be found in various settings, including manufacturing of semiconductors, cleaning of metals and paint production.

Other chemicals that can cause birth defects are the aliphatic hydrocarbons like dichloroethane or trichloroethylene perchloroethylene. These chemicals have been known to cause birth problems, including cardiac defects in babies born to mothers exposed to them during the womb.

Parents have filed lawsuits to expose companies to liability for the families of soldiers at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, to harmful chemicals. Some of the birth defect lawyers have secured substantial settlements on behalf families who had their children born with severe defects because of the toxic chemical exposures at the base.

Environmental Exposure

Certain birth defects may be caused by a combination of medical negligence and environmental factors. If a family suspects the birth defect attorneys defects of a baby could be the result of medical negligence or prescription drug overdose or exposure to harmful chemicals, they should consult a DC birth injury lawyer to discuss their case.

Chemicals and other pollutants in the environment can cause serious birth defects when they are inhaled or absorbed by pregnant women. These chemicals are called teratogens. Over 4 million chemicals exist in our air, food and water and some can be harmful when they come into contact with a woman who is pregnant.

For instance, arsenic from drinking water and cadmium from coal that is contaminated can cause a variety of birth defects, as well as other health issues. Certain birth defects can also be associated with industrial solvents like benzene (a metal degreaser) and toluene (a solvent for plastics) and trichloroethylene. Glycol ethers that are utilized in the production of semiconductors, silicon chips and video displays are well-known to increase the risk of birth defects too.

LK's highly experienced birth defect lawyers have filed numerous lawsuits on behalf of children who suffer from a range of birth defects as a result of unintentional exposure to toxic chemicals and chemicals at workplaces or in their homes. These lawsuits involve complicated scientific analyses and expert witnesses such as toxicologists and epidemiologists.