Why You Should Hire a Birth Defect Lawyer

If your child is born with a birth defect it can have a devastating effect on your family and you. Medical bills, therapy costs and other expenses can quickly become a burden.

A Hyattsville lawyer who is specialized in birth defects may be able to help you seek compensation for the cost of caring for your children with disabilities. Legal claims for birth defects can be a little tangled and therefore it is vital to seek legal advice as soon as you can.

Medical Malpractice

Medical professionals must follow the highest standards of care when treating pregnant women and their infants. When a doctor's actions do not meet the standards and cause birth defect or vimeo injury or injury, they could be held responsible for damages sustained by their patient. A DC lawyer with experience in lawsuits involving birth defects will help you determine if your child's condition could have been caused by an error Vimeo made by a doctor during the pregnancy or delivery.

A doctor may be liable for an injury that occurs during birth if they fail in diagnosing or appropriately respond to distress of the fetus. This could lead to a variety of serious problems, including hypoxic ischemic brain injury (HIE) and brain injuries like cerebral palsy.

The difference between birth defects and birth injury is that defects are a part of a person's genetic makeup however, injuries are caused by an event that occurs during labor, pregnancy, or delivery. These injuries can be caused by conditions like Erb's Palsy which is caused when the nerves that power and control the arms of an infant are stretched or damaged during birth and the caput succedaneum is an increase in the size of the scalp. Both of these could lead to lifelong disability and require ongoing treatment, resulting in hefty medical costs. A Washington, DC lawyer who is specialized in birth defects will offer a free consultation to review your case, and determine the best course for you and your baby.

Prescription Drugs

An attorney for birth defects may be able to help parents determine the reason behind the birth injury of a child. Many birth defects result from genetics or factors during pregnancy. However, certain medications can also cause birth defects. Certain common medications have a significant impact on fetuses and babies, particularly during the first trimester of a pregnancy. They include anti-nausea medicines, NSAIDs, chemotherapy drugs as well as certain antibiotics, and more. These medications have been proven to increase the risk of limb and brain defects, heart defects, and craniosynostois.

It is the professional responsibility of doctors to be aware of these risks when prescribing medicines for pregnant women. If doctors fail to follow this standard of care, then they may be held liable for negligence. Pharma companies can also be held responsible for not adequately informing mothers about the risks associated with their medication. Zofran is a drug used to treat nausea in cancer patients, has been found to increase the risk of major defects during the first trimester pregnancy.

A birth defect lawyer can help family members receive compensation for future and current medical expenses related to the disability or injury in addition to loss of income and quality of life. This can include doctor's, hospital pharmaceutical, and other costs, in addition to aidive devices and treatments.

Chemical Exposure

A birth defect lawyer could sue families of children with congenital disabilities because due to the negligence of corporations who expose pregnant women to chemicals and medications that cause birth deformities. They are trained to find out the cause of the birth defect, so they can sue companies that expose mothers to teratogens when they work or in their home.

Metals, fungicides, herbicides and pesticides are a few chemicals that can cause birth defects. They are referred to as Teratogens as they interfere with the healthy growth of the fetus causing chemical changes that prevent normal cell function or Vimeo cause organs to be malformed. These chemicals are used in diverse settings like manufacturing of semiconductors, metal cleaning and paint production.

Other hazardous chemicals that could cause birth defects are aliphatic chlorinated hydrocarbons, such as perchloroethylene, trichloroethylene or dichloroethane. These chemicals have been found to cause birth defects, such as cardiac defects in babies born to mothers exposed to them in the womb.

Parents have filed suit against a number of companies involved in the exposure of families of soldiers at Camp Lejeune to these harmful chemicals. Some of the birth defect lawyers have won significant settlements on behalf of families who had their children 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 believes that the birth defect of their child may be the result of medical negligence, prescription drug overdose or exposure to harmful chemicals, they should consult a DC birth injury lawyer to discuss the matter.

If pregnant women consume or absorb contaminants from their environment they could develop serious birth defects. Teratogens are the names given to these chemicals. More than 4 million chemicals exist in our food, air and water and a few can be harmful when they come into contact with a woman who is pregnant.

For instance, arsenic in drinking water and cadmium in coal that has been contaminated can trigger numerous birth defects and health problems. Industrial solvents like benzene, toluene and trichloroethylene (a metal degreaser) are also linked to certain birth defects. Glycol-ethers, which are used in the manufacture of silicon chips, semiconductors and video displays are recognized to increase a woman's risk of developing birth defects as well.

LK's experienced attorneys for birth defects have filed many lawsuits in the name of children who suffered from various birth defects due to an unintentional exposure to chemicals or toxic substances at their workplace or home. These lawsuits typically involve complex scientific analysis and expert witnesses, including toxicologists or epidemiologists, geneticists occupational medicine specialists and embryologists.