Why You Should Hire a Birth Defect Attorney

Learning your child has a birth defect can transform the joy of parenthood into a harrowing experience. Most birth defects require lifetime medical treatment. This can lead to massive financial burdens.

A New York birth defects attorney can determine if the child's condition is the result of medical malpractice or harmful chemicals or drugs.

Causes of Birth Defects

You should contact an Long Island birth defect attorney as soon as you can if your child has an anomaly in birth that could have been avoided by a medical professional. A reputable lawyer will be able to handle the preceding steps quickly and efficiently, ensuring you can grieve for your family member.

Birth defects can affect almost any part of a fetus. They may cause physical problems or developmental and intellectual disabilities like difficulty communicating or learning, or having difficulty in activities such as walking or taking care of oneself.

Certain birth defects can be identified before the baby is born through special tests. These include analyzing the cells in blood samples or looking at amniotic fluid or the placenta. Doctors are increasingly able to detect birth defects by ultrasound of the fetus and magnetic resonance imaging.

Some birth defects can be caused by genetic factors, for example abnormalities in the chromosomes and genes. These genetic defects could be passed on from parents or they may result from new mutations to the fetus's DNA that occurred during conception. Some of the most commonly occurring genetic birth defects are trisomy 21, spina bifida and Tay-Sachs disease. Many other genetic birth defects have no cause known in any way.

Medical Malpractice

If you or your child suffered a medical injury due to an error by a doctor or another health medical professional, you could be able to sue for medical malpractice. This could include the failure to identify, for instance an obstetrician who fails to consider your symptoms seriously, or makes a wrong diagnosis, and is unable to begin the proper treatment, or fails to follow up with the results of tests. It can also include mistakes with medication, like the wrong diagnosis of anesthesia, giving too much medication or the wrong medication, or surgical errors.

Finding a lawyer who has expertise in malpractice cases can be a difficult task. You can ask your family members, friends as well as lawyers from other fields for suggestions. Additionally, you can contact your state bar association. Most bar associations have search/referral tools to help you find a qualified medical malpractice attorney.

Chemical Exposure

Sometimes birth defects can be caused by exposure to dangerous chemicals that harm the mother or fetus. Many of these chemicals are employed in workplaces where they are used to make products like plastics paints, batteries, and ceramic glazes. These chemicals can be consumed through inhalation, ingestion or simply absorbed through the skin. Certain of these toxins have been found to increase the risk of a birth defect in a child, such as spina bifida and other mental and physical disorders.

These teratogen chemicals can be found in drugs that doctors have not properly prescribed, in the use of chemicals in the workplace, such as those in semiconductor "clean rooms" or in toxic substances that pollute the air and water. The Thornton Law Firm has represented many parents whose children have been born with serious birth defects after the mothers were exposed to glycol ethers as well as pesticides and coal ash at their place of employment.

Contact an experienced New York birth injury lawyer for a no-cost consultation today in the event that you believe the birth defects of your child were caused by medical negligence, a toxic substance or a dangerous drug during pregnancy. These claims have strict deadlines and are time-sensitive. An experienced attorney can help you determine whether your child is able to file a claim, and if it is necessary to file it through a court proceeding or a settlement agreement.

Product Liability

Many birth defects are due to an incorrect prescription or exposure to chemicals. If parents believe that the child's condition is due to negligence in medicine or the use of dangerous drugs and medications, they should speak with an attorney for birth defects right away. These cases are often complicated and extremely time-sensitive.

Medical malpractice cases usually involve the causes of a birth defect that is caused by environmental factors, such as exposure to chemicals or environmental toxins as well as improperly prescribed medications or drugs, or inadequate prenatal care. Families should seek legal help immediately as the statute of limitations on medical malpractice claims is only one year.

A medication birth defect lawsuit could also be filed if the doctor was negligent in prescribing a medication to the mother. For example, if the doctor was not aware of the interactions of a drug with other medications that the woman may be taking or birth defect lawsuit did not adequately inform her of its possible side effects. A Maryland lawyer for birth defects in medication will assist clients to recover damages when a doctor has caused a birth defect or injury due to being negligent.

A family with a newborn who has a serious birth defect could be required to pay for a hefty amount of surgical, medical, and therapy throughout the child's life. A knowledgeable and experienced birth defect lawyer can assist parents to determine if their child's medical issue was the result of medical malpractice or a harmful drug exposure to toxic substances.