Why You Should Hire a Birth Defect Lawyer

If your child is born with a birth deformity it can be devastating for your family as well as you. Therapy costs, medical bills and other losses can add up quickly.

A Hyattsville lawyer with a specialization in birth defects could assist you seek compensation for the costs of caring for your child with disabilities. A legal claim for birth defects can be complicated, and you should consult with a legal professional immediately.

Medical Malpractice

Medical professionals must adhere to a set of standards when treating pregnant women or their babies. When a doctor's actions fall below this standard and cause birth defect or injury and/or death, they may be held responsible for harms suffered by their patient. A DC lawyer with experience in birth defect lawsuits can assist you in determining if your child's condition was caused by a medical mistake during pregnancy or delivery.

A doctor could also be responsible for a birth injury when they fail in diagnosing or properly respond to distress of the fetus. This can cause a number of serious problems, including hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) and brain injuries such as cerebral palsy.

The distinction between a birth defect and a birth injury is that defects are part of a person's genetic makeup and injuries are triggered by something occurring during labor, pregnancy, or birth. A possible injury is Erb's spalsy where the nerves that control the infant's arms and limbs are stretched or torn. Another type of injury is the caput succedaneum, an inflammation of the scalp. Both can lead to a lifelong disability, and ongoing treatment will cost a great deal of money. A Washington, DC lawyer who is skilled in birth defects can offer a free consultation to review your case, and determine the best course of action for you and birth defect lawyer your baby.

Prescription Drugs

A birth defect lawyer could 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 because of medications. Many common medications have a profound effect on fetuses, especially in the first trimester of pregnancy. Anti-nausea medication, NSAIDs and chemotherapy drugs are among the most frequently used. These drugs have been linked to an increase in risk of limb defects and brain defects, heart defects and craniosynostois.

It is the professional responsibility of doctors to consider these risks when prescribing medications for pregnant women. If doctors do not follow this standard of care, then they may be held liable for malpractice. Pharma companies may also be held accountable for not adequately informing mothers of the risks of their medication. For example, Zofran, a medication used to treat nausea in cancer patients, has been proven to significantly increase the risk of serious congenital defects during first trimester pregnancies.

A birth defect lawyer can help families get compensation for future and current medical expenses resulting from the disability or injury and also loss of earnings and quality of life. This could include hospital fees, doctor's fees, pharmaceutical costs and other costs, as well assistive devices and therapy.

Chemical Exposure

A birth defect lawyer can bring an action on behalf of families of children with congenital disabilities resulting from the negligence of companies that expose pregnant women to chemicals or drugs that cause birth defects. These lawyers are specially trained to find out the cause of the birth defect to sue companies which expose mothers to teratogens as they work or at their homes.

Metals, fungicides, herbicides, and pesticides are among the chemicals that can cause birth defects. These chemicals are known as Teratogens as they interfere with the healthy development of the fetus through creating chemical changes that hinder normal cell function or lead to organs that are not properly formed. These chemicals can be found in many different settings, including manufacturing of semiconductors, metal cleaning and paint production.

Other chemicals that may cause birth defects include aliphatic hydrocarbons, such as dichloroethane or trichloroethylene perchloroethylene. These chemicals have been proven to cause birth defects in the heart in babies born to mothers who were exposed in the womb.

Parents have filed lawsuits in order 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 obtained significant settlements on behalf of families who had their children born with serious defects as a result of exposure to toxic chemicals at the base.

Environmental Exposure

Some birth defects can be caused by a combination of medical negligence and environmental factors or chemicals. If a family believes their child's birth defect may result from medical negligence, prescription drug abuse or exposure to toxic chemicals, they should consult an DC birth injury lawyer to discuss the situation.

If pregnant women ingest or absorb contaminants from the surrounding environment and then develop birth defects. Teratogens are the names given to these substances. More than 4 million chemicals are found in our air, food and water. Certain of these chemicals are dangerous to pregnant women.

Arsenic in drinking water or cadmium in contaminated coal for instance, may cause birth defects and other health issues. Certain birth defects are also associated with industrial solvents like benzene (a metal degreaser) as well as toluene (a solvent for plastics) and trichloroethylene. Glycol-ethers also increase the risk of birth defects in women. These chemicals are used for the manufacture of semiconductors display panels, silicon chip displays, and video displays.

The experienced lawyers at LK for birth defects have filed numerous lawsuits on behalf of children suffering from many birth defects as a result of an unintentional exposure to chemicals or toxic substances at their workplace or home. These lawsuits involve complex scientific analyses and expert witnesses, such as toxicologists and epidemiologists.