Why You Should Hire a Birth Defect Lawyer

If your child is born with a birth deformity it can cause a lot of grief for Birth Defect Lawsuits you and your entire family. Medical bills, therapy costs and other losses can quickly become a burden.

A Hyattsville lawyer with a specialization in birth defects could assist you claim compensation for the cost of caring for your child with disabilities. A legal claim for birth defects can be complicated, which is why you should seek legal counsel whenever you can.

Medical Malpractice

Medical professionals must adhere to a set of guidelines when treating pregnant women and their babies. If the actions of a doctor do not meet the standards and cause a birth defect or injury, they can be held accountable for the damage suffered by their patient. A DC lawyer who has experience in birth defect lawsuits can assist you in determining if your child's condition was caused by a medical error during pregnancy or during delivery.

A doctor could also be held responsible for birth injuries if they fail to diagnose fetal distress or are unable to respond in a timely manner. This can result in a variety of serious complications, including hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) and cerebral palsy.

The difference between birth defects and birth injury is that defects are part of a person's genetic make-up, while injuries are caused by something that happens during labor, pregnancy or the birth. Injuries can include ailments like Erb's palsy which develops when the nerves that power and control the arms of a newborn are stretched or ruptured during birth and caput succedaneum, an increase in the size of the scalp. Both can result in lifelong disability, and ongoing treatment will cost a lot of money. A Washington, DC birth defect lawyer will provide a no-cost initial consultation to analyze your case and determine the most appropriate course of action for you and your child.

Prescription Drugs

An attorney for birth defect lawsuit defects may be able help parents determine the cause for a child's birth injury. Many birth defects are caused by the genetics of the baby or other factors during pregnancy. However, medications can also cause birth defects. A variety of common medications can have negative effects on fetuses. This is especially relevant in the first three months of pregnancy. Anti-nausea medicines, NSAIDs and chemotherapy medications are among the most frequently used. These medications have been proven to increase the risk of limb and heart defects, brain deformities, and craniosynostois.

The duty of a doctor is to consider the risks when prescribing medications for women who are pregnant. If doctors do not meet the standards of care required, they may be liable for medical malpractice. Pharma companies could also be held responsible for birth defect lawsuits not adequately informing mothers about the risks of their medication. Zofran is a medication that is used to treat nausea among cancer patients, has been found to increase the risk of major defects in the first trimester pregnancy.

A birth defect lawyer can help a family get compensation for medical expenses, loss of income and quality of living. This could include hospital costs, doctor's fees, pharmaceutical costs and other expenses in addition to assistive devices, and therapy.

Chemical Exposure

A birth defect lawyer may bring a lawsuit on behalf of families of children who suffer from congenital disabilities because from the negligence of companies which expose pregnant women and drugs that can cause birth deformities. These lawyers are specially-trained to determine the reason for birth defects so they can bring a suit against companies that expose pregnant women to teratogens either at workplace or at home.

Metals, fungicides, herbicides, and pesticides are just a few of the chemicals that can cause birth defects. These chemicals are called teratogens due to the fact that they interfere with the normal development of a the fetus via chemical changes that can cause abnormal organs, or disrupt normal cell function. These chemicals are present in a variety environments, including metal cleaning and semiconductor manufacturing.

Other harmful chemicals that could cause birth defects are aliphatic chlorinated hydrocarbons, such as trichloroethylene, perchloroethylene and dichloroethane. These chemicals have been proven to cause cardiac birth defects in babies born to mothers who were exposed during their time in the womb.

Parents have filed lawsuits in order to expose companies to liability for exposing families of soldiers at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina exposed to harmful chemicals. Some of these birth defect lawyers have secured substantial settlements for families who had children born with serious defects as a result of the toxic chemical exposures on the base.

Environmental Exposure

Certain birth defects may be caused by a combination of medical negligence and environmental factors. If a family suspects that the birth defect in their child could result from medical negligence, prescription drug overdose or exposure to harmful chemicals, they should contact a DC birth injury lawyer to discuss the issue.

If pregnant women ingest or absorb pollutants from the environment, they can cause serious birth defects. Teratogens are the name for these substances. More than 4 million chemicals exist in our food, air and water, and some of them are harmful if they come into contact with a woman who is pregnant.

Arsenic found in drinking water or cadmium from coal that is contaminated for instance, may cause birth defects and other health issues. Industrial solvents like benzene, toluene and trichloroethylene (a metal degreaser) are also associated with certain birth defects. Glycol-ethers are also known for their ability to increase the likelihood of birth defects occurring in women. These chemicals are used for the manufacture of semiconductors, silicon chip displays and video displays.

Our experienced attorneys for birth defects have filed a variety of lawsuits in behalf of children who suffered from a variety of 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.