Why You Should Hire a Birth Defect Lawyer

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

A Hyattsville lawyer with a specialization in grosse Pointe farms birth defect lawyer defects can help you seek compensation for the cost of caring for your disabled children. Legal claims for birth defects are complex and therefore it is vital to seek legal advice immediately.

Medical Malpractice

Medical professionals must follow the highest standards of care when treating pregnant women and their infants. If a doctor's actions are not in line with this standard and cause a birth defect or injury and/or death, they may be held accountable for the harms suffered by their patient. A DC lawyer with experience in lawsuits involving birth defects can help you determine whether your child's health condition may be due to an error made by a doctor during pregnancy or delivery.

A doctor could also be accountable for birth injuries if they fail in diagnosing or appropriately respond to fetal distress. This could lead to a variety of serious complications, 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, birth, or labor. Injuries can include issues like Erb's syndrome which develops when the nerves which energize and control an infant's arms are stretched or torn during the birth process, and caput succedaneum, an increase in the size of the scalp. Both of them can cause permanent disability, and ongoing treatment will cost a lot of money. A Washington, DC birth defect lawyer can offer a no-cost initial consultation to examine your case and determine the most appropriate method of action for you and your child.

Prescription Drugs

A birth defect lawyer may be able to help parents determine the root of a child's birth defect. Many birth defects are caused by genes or other factors that occur during pregnancy. However, medications can also cause birth defects. A variety of common medications can have a significant impact on fetuses, especially in the first trimester of pregnancy. This includes anti-nausea medication, NSAIDs, chemotherapy drugs including certain antibiotics, and many more. These medications have been linked to an increase in chance of limb deformities, heart defects, brain deformities and craniosynostois.

It is the professional responsibility of doctors to consider the risks when prescribing medication for women who are pregnant. When doctors fail to meet the requirements of this standard of care, they may be liable for medical malpractice. Pharmaceutical companies could be held liable as well for failing to adequately warn mothers of the dangers that come with their medicines. Zofran is a medication that is used to treat nausea in cancer patients, was shown to increase the risk of major defects in the first trimester pregnancies.

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

Chemical Exposure

A birth defect lawyer could file a lawsuit on behalf of families of children who have congenital disabilities because of the negligence of businesses who expose pregnant women to chemicals and medications that cause fitchburg birth defect law firm defects. They are trained to identify the cause of the birth defects so that they can file a lawsuit against companies who expose pregnant women to teratogens at workplace or at home.

Some of the exposures to chemicals that lead to birth defects are metals, fungicides, herbicides and other pesticides. These chemicals are referred to as Teratogens since they interfere with the normal development of a fetus through chemical changes that cause abnormal organs or prevent normal cell function. These chemicals can be found in diverse settings like manufacturing of semiconductors, metal cleaning and paint production.

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

Parents have filed lawsuits against several companies who were responsible for the exposure of families of soldiers at Camp Lejeune to these harmful chemicals. Some of these birth defect lawyers have secured substantial settlements for families that had children born with severe leander birth defect lawyer defects due to the toxic chemical exposures at the base.

Environmental Exposure

Certain birth defects can be caused by an unintended medical error and environmental conditions or chemicals. If a family believes that the birth defect of their child could be due to medical negligence, prescription drug overdose or exposure to harmful chemicals, they should speak with a DC birth injury lawyer to discuss the issue.

Chemicals and other pollutants in the environment can cause serious birth defects when they are consumed by or taken in by pregnant women. Teratogens are the names given to these substances. More than 4 million chemicals are found in our air, food and water. Some of these chemicals are dangerous to pregnant women.

For instance, arsenic in drinking water and cadmium from coal that is contaminated can cause numerous birth defects, as well as other health issues. Certain birth defects are also associated with industrial solvents like benzene (a metal degreaser), toluene (a solvent for plastics) and trichloroethylene. Glycol ethers, used in the production of semiconductors, silicon chips and video displays are well-known to increase the chances of having birth defects.

The experienced attorneys at LK's firm for birth defects have filed numerous lawsuits on behalf of children suffering from a variety of birth defects due to an unintentional exposure to chemicals or toxic substances at their workplace or home. These lawsuits usually involve a complex scientific analysis and expert witnesses, including toxicologists and epidemiologists, geneticists, occupational medicine specialists and embryologists.