Why You Should Hire a Birth Defect Lawyer

If your child was born with an anomaly in the birth, it can have a devastating impact on you and your family. Medical bills, therapy costs and other expenses can quickly add up.

A Hyattsville birth defect lawyer can help you file an appeal to receive compensation for the cost of caring for your disabled child. A legal claim for birth defects can be complicated, which is why you should seek legal counsel as soon as you can.

Medical Malpractice

Medical professionals must adhere to a certain standard when treating pregnant women or their babies. A doctor can be held accountable for damages if their actions result in birth defects or injuries. A DC lawyer with experience in lawsuits for Morton Birth defect lawsuit defects can assist you in determining whether your child's illness could be the result of an error made by a doctor during pregnancy or delivery.

A doctor may also be the cause of an injury that occurs during birth if they fail to diagnose or respond adequately to distress of the fetus. This can lead to various serious problems, including hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy and brain injuries such as cerebral palsy.

The difference between a birth defect and a birth injury is that defects are part of a person's genetic makeup, while injuries are caused due to something happening during labor, pregnancy, or during delivery. The causes of injuries include ailments like Erb's palsy, which occurs when the nerves that energize and control the infant's arms are stretched or ruptured during birth, and caput succedaneum, a swelling of the scalp. Both can result in permanent disability, and continued treatment will cost a lot of money. A Washington, DC lawyer who is an expert in birth defects may offer a free consultation in order to review your case, and determine the best course of action for you and your baby.

Prescription Drugs

An attorney for birth defects may help parents determine the cause for the birth injury of a child. While many birth defects are the result of genetics and factors during the mother's pregnancy but they can also happen due to medications. Certain common medications can have a negative impact on the fetuses. This is especially 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 found to increase the risk of developing limb and brain deformities, heart defects and craniosynostosis.

It is the responsibility of a doctor to be aware of the potential risks when prescribing medications for women who are pregnant. When doctors fail to meet this standard of care they may be liable for medical negligence. Pharma companies may also be held accountable for not properly informing mothers about the risks of their medication. Zofran is a medication used to treat nausea among cancer patients, was found to increase the risk of major defects during the first trimester pregnancies.

An attorney for birth defects can assist a family to obtain compensation for medical expenses, income loss and the quality of life. This could include doctor's, hospital, pharmaceutical, and other costs, as well as assistive devices and therapies.

Chemical Exposure

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

Metals, fungicides, herbicides and pesticides are some of the chemicals that can cause birth defects. They are referred to as Teratogens since they interfere with the development of the fetus through making chemical changes that inhibit normal cell function or cause organs that are malformed. These chemicals are found in various settings, including the manufacturing of semiconductors, metal cleaning and paint production.

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

Parents have filed lawsuits to ensure that companies are held accountable for the families of soldiers who live at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina exposed to harmful chemicals. Some of these birth defects lawyers have secured significant settlements for families who have children who were born with severe defects resulting from the exposure to toxic chemicals on the base.

Environmental Exposure

Certain birth defects can be caused by an unintended medical error as well as environmental conditions or chemicals. If a family is concerned that the birth defect of their child could be a result of medical malpractice, prescription drug overdose or exposure to toxic chemicals, they should contact a DC birth injury lawyer to discuss the situation.

Chemicals and other contaminants in the environment can cause serious bellevue birth defect lawyer defects when they are inhaled or absorbed by pregnant women. These chemicals are referred to as Teratogens. More than 4 million chemicals can be found in our food, air and water. Certain of these chemicals may be dangerous to pregnant women.

For instance, arsenic in drinking water and cadmium from coal that has been contaminated can trigger various birth defects and health problems. Certain birth defects can also be linked to industrial solvents like benzene (a metal degreaser), toluene (a solvent for plastics) and trichloroethylene. Glycol-ethers are also known for their ability to increase the risk of birth defects among women. These chemicals are used to manufacture semiconductors as well as silicon chip displays and video displays.

The experienced lawyers at LK for birth defects have filed a variety of lawsuits in behalf of children who suffered from many birth defects as a result of accidental exposure to toxic chemicals or chemicals at their workplace or home. These lawsuits typically require complex scientific analysis and expert witnesses, including toxicologists and epidemiologists, geneticists, occupational medicine specialists and embryologists.