Why You Should Hire a Birth Defect Lawyer

If your child was born with a birth defect it could be devastating for the entire family. The cost of therapy, medical bills and other losses can quickly increase.

A Hyattsville birth defect lawyer can help you file an action to collect compensation for the cost of taking care of your child with disabilities. Legal claims for birth defects are complex and therefore it is crucial to seek legal advice immediately.

Medical Malpractice

Medical professionals are required to adhere to a set of standards when treating pregnant women or their infants. If a doctor's actions do not meet the standards and cause birth defect or injury and/or death, they may be held accountable for injuries suffered by their patient. A DC lawyer with expertise in lawsuits involving birth defects can assist you in determining whether your child's condition was caused by a medical mistake during pregnancy or during delivery.

A doctor may also be held responsible for birth injuries if they fail to diagnose fetal distress or fail to respond appropriately. This could lead to a variety of serious problems, including hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) and brain injuries, such as cerebral palsy.

Birth injuries differ from birth defects in 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 which energize and control the arms of a newborn are stretched or ruptured during birth as well as caput succedaneum which is an increase in the size of the scalp. Both of them can cause permanent disability, and continued treatment will cost a lot of money. A Washington, DC birth defect lawyer can provide a free initial consultation to review your case and determine the best method of action for you and your child.

Prescription Drugs

A birth defect lawyer might be able help parents determine the cause for an infant's birth injury. While many birth defects are caused by genetics and other factors that occur during the mother's pregnancy however, they can also be caused as a result of medications. A number of commonly used medications can have negative effects on fetuses. This is especially relevant in the first three months of pregnancy. This includes anti-nausea medication and NSAIDs as well as chemotherapy medications such as certain antibiotics and more. These medications have been linked to a higher risk of limb deformities and heart defects, brain deformities and craniosynostois.

A doctor's job is to consider these risks when prescribing medication for women who are pregnant. If doctors fail to follow this standard of care, they may be held liable for negligence. Pharmaceutical companies could be held liable as well for failing to adequately warn mothers about the risks associated with their medications. For birth defect attorney example, Zofran, a medication used to treat nausea in cancer patients, has been proven to significantly increase the risk of congenital defects that are major in first trimester pregnancies.

A birth defect attorney can help a family get compensation for medical expenses, income loss and quality of life. This could include hospital costs as well as doctor's fees, pharmaceutical costs and other expenses as well assistive devices and therapy.

Chemical Exposure

A birth defect lawyer may bring an action on behalf of the families of children suffering from congenital disabilities resulting from the negligence of companies who expose pregnant women chemicals or drugs that cause birth defects. These lawyers are specially trained to find out the root of the birth defect so that they can file a lawsuit against companies that expose mothers to teratogens as they are working or in their homes.

Metals, fungicides and herbicides as well as pesticides are among the chemicals that can cause birth defects. These chemicals are called Teratogens since they interfere with the development of the fetus by creating chemical changes that hinder normal cell function or lead to organs that are not properly formed. These chemicals are used in a variety of settings including semiconductor manufacturing, metal cleaning and paint production.

Other chemicals that can cause birth defects are aliphatic hydrocarbons with aliphatic chlorinated chemistry such as perchloroethylene, trichloroethylene and dichloroethane. These chemicals have been shown to cause birth defects, such as cardiac defects, in babies born to mothers who were exposed to them while in the womb.

Parents have filed lawsuits to make companies accountable for the families of soldiers in Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, to harmful chemicals. Some of these birth defects lawyers have won substantial settlements for families that had children born with serious defects as a result of the exposure to toxic chemicals at the base.

Environmental Exposure

Some birth defects are caused by a combination of medical negligence as well as environmental conditions or chemicals. If a family believes their child's birth defect may be due to medical malpractice, prescription drug overdose or exposure to toxic chemicals, they should contact a DC birth injury lawyer to discuss the matter.

If pregnant women consume or absorb contaminants from the environment They could cause serious birth defects. Teratogens are the term used to describe these substances. More than 4 million chemicals can be found in our food, air and water. Some of these chemicals may be harmful to pregnant women.

Arsenic found in drinking water or cadmium from coal that is contaminated for instance, can cause birth defects as well as other health problems. Industrial solvents, such as benzene toluene and trichloroethylene (a metal degreaser) are also associated with certain birth defect attorney defects. Glycol ethers that are utilized in the production of semiconductors, silicon chips and video displays, are known to increase the chance of having birth defects.

The experienced birth defect attorneys at LK have brought many lawsuits on behalf of children who have suffered from a variety of birth defects as a result of improper exposure to chemicals and toxic substances at work or at home. These lawsuits require complex scientific analyses and expert witnesses like toxicologists and epidemiologists.