Why You Should Hire a Birth Defect Lawyer

If your child was born with a birth defect it can cause a lot of grief for you and your entire family. Therapy costs, medical bills and other losses can quickly accumulate.

A Hyattsville lawyer who specializes in birth defects can help you seek compensation for the cost of caring for your children with disabilities. Legal claims for fort stockton birth defect attorney defects are complicated and therefore it is vital to seek legal advice whenever you can.

Medical Malpractice

Medical professionals must follow the highest standards of care when treating pregnant women and their infants. A doctor could be held accountable for any damages when their actions cause birth defects or injuries. A DC lawyer who has experience in birth defect lawsuits can help you determine whether your child's condition may be the result of an error made by the medical professional during pregnancy or during delivery.

A doctor could be held accountable for birth injuries if they fail to recognize fetal distress and do not respond appropriately. This could lead to numerous serious issues, including hypoxic-ischemic neuropathy and brain injuries such as cerebral palsy.

The distinction between birth defects and birth injury is that defects are part of a person's genetic makeup however, injuries are caused by an event that occurs during labor, pregnancy or delivery. Injuries can include ailments like Erb's palsy that occurs when the nerves that energize and control the infant's arms are stretched or torn during birth, and caput succedaneum, a swelling of the scalp. Both of these conditions can result in permanent disability and require ongoing treatment, resulting in large medical expenses. A Washington, DC lawyer who is skilled in birth defects can provide a free consultation to analyze your case and determine the best course of action for you and your baby.

Prescription Drugs

A birth defect attorney may be able to assist parents in determining the reason behind the birth injury of a child. While many birth defects are the result of genetics and factors during a mother's pregnancy however, they may also occur because of medications. Certain common medications have a significant effect on fetuses, particularly in the first trimester of a pregnancy. Anti-nausea medicines, NSAIDs and chemotherapy drugs are among the most popular. These drugs have been linked to an increased chance of limb deformities, heart defects, brain deformities and craniosynostois.

A doctor's responsibility is to take into consideration these risks when prescribing medication for pregnant women. If doctors do not meet the requirements of this standard of care, they could be held accountable for medical negligence. Pharmaceutical companies could be held liable as well for not properly warning mothers about the risks associated with their drugs. Zofran, which is 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 a family receive reimbursement for future and ongoing medical expenses associated with the disability or injury in addition to loss of income and quality of life. This could include hospital, doctor's, pharmaceutical, and other costs, in addition to assistive devices and treatments.

Chemical Exposure

A Dellwood Birth Defect Law Firm defect lawyer may bring an action on behalf families of children with congenital disabilities resulting from the negligence of companies that expose pregnant women chemicals or drugs that cause mocksville birth defect attorney defects. They are trained to identify the cause of the birth defects so that they can bring a case against companies who expose pregnant women to teratogens at work or in their home.

Some of the chemical exposures that contribute to birth defects are the use of fungicides and metals as well as herbicides and other pesticides. These chemicals are known as Teratogens because they affect the healthy development a the fetus via chemical changes that cause abnormal organs, or disrupt normal cell function. These chemicals are found in many different settings, including 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 or dichloroethane. These chemicals have been shown to cause birth problems, including cardiac disorders, in babies born to mothers who were exposed to them in the womb.

Parents have filed lawsuits against several firms that were responsible for the exposure of families of soldiers at Camp Lejeune to these harmful chemicals. Some of the birth defect lawyers have secured substantial settlements on behalf families whose children were born with severe defects because of exposure to toxic chemicals at the base.

Environmental Exposure

Certain birth defects may be caused by a combination of medical negligence and environmental conditions. If a family suspects that a child's birth defects may be due to medical negligence or prescription drug overdose or exposure to harmful chemicals, they should consult a DC birth injury attorney to discuss their case.

If pregnant women inhale or absorb contaminants from the environment and then develop birth defects. These substances are referred to as teratogens. Over 4 million chemicals are present in our food, air and water, and some of them can be harmful when they come into contact with pregnant women.

Arsenic from drinking water or cadmium in coal that has been contaminated for instance, may cause birth defects as well as other health problems. Industrial solvents, such as benzene toluene and trichloroethylene (a metal degreaser) are also linked with certain birth defects. Glycol ethers, which are used in the manufacture of silicon chips, semiconductors and video displays are known to increase the risk of developing birth defects as well.

LK's skilled birth defect attorneys have filed numerous lawsuits on behalf of children who suffer from a range of birth defects as a result of wrongful toxic and chemical exposure at work or in their homes. These lawsuits typically require complicated scientific analysis and expert witnesses, such as toxicologists and epidemiologists, geneticists, occupational medicine experts, and embryologists.