What Causes a Birth Defect?

The last thing a expecting parent wants to hear is that their child may have a birth defect. These issues can be caused by the pregnancy and can impact the physical or mental health of your child.

A doctor can identify birth defects in pregnancy through the prenatal test or newborn screening. However other birth defects might not be diagnosed until after your child is born or a few years later when they show symptoms.

What was the reason for your child's deformity?

Many birth defects are not known. However there are several things that can increase a woman's risk of having a baby born with defects. One of them is taking certain medications or prescription drugs before becoming pregnant, having a family history of birth defect law firm defects, or having medical conditions such as rheumatic illness. Women with a family history of these diseases are advised to speak with an expert on genetics prior to becoming pregnant.

Whether a child's birth defect causes serious problems or not depends on which body part is affected and the extent of the body part affected. Usually, the more severe the defect it, the more serious the problem will be.

The majority of birth defects are caused by genetics or the environment during fetal development. You can reduce the chance of a birth Defect attorney defect talking to a genetic counsellor as well as learning about the health background of your family and speaking with a geneticist.

Structural birth defects are those that change how a specific part of the body appears or functions. They vary from the obvious like cleft lips and cleft palate, but also the invisible, such as metabolic disorders or chromosome disorder. Genetic conditions that are passed down through the generations may be a sign of birth defects with structural causes. Environmental factors, like a lack folic acid, can cause neural tube defects that lead to brain or spinal cord development not working as intended.

Gather More Evidence than You Think

There are a variety of medical procedures that a pregnant woman may undergo to determine the cause of a possible birth defect. One example is amniocentesis, which entails a doctor taking a small sample of fetal fluid for testing. This procedure can reveal chromosomal modifications in addition to other health conditions such as infections (such as rubella or Zika) or genetic anomalies.

A doctor birth defect attorney can examine the blood, amniotic liquid and fetus's tissues for indications of a birth defect. These tests are crucial to determining the cause of birth defects. They also help determine the degree of a birth defect and its effects on a child's life.

However, some birth defects can remain unnoticed until a child is born or, in rare instances, when an adult. These problems aren't visible when they occur and can be detected with diagnostic equipment. In these cases the medical expert witness must be knowledgeable with the technologies and have the necessary training to identify the defects. A medical malpractice lawyer with expertise should be able to pinpoint the most appropriate specialist for your case.

Employ a Medical Malpractice Lawyer

A child born with a serious defect or severe birth injury can drastically alter the life of families. These injuries can cause long-lasting physical and emotional issues that often require the need for a lifetime of medical treatment.

Medical science can pinpoint the causes of 30% of birth defects, others remain unsolved. Research has found that certain chemicals and substances, such as those found in prescription or over the counter medicines taken by mothers or children, harmful chemicals in homes and communities as well as contaminated groundwater and air may cause birth defects.

Doctors have a duty to evaluate the mother's current medications, and advise her of any dangers for the fetus. If they fail in this obligation, they could be held accountable for birth defects that are caused by medications.

Doctors are also required to examine the safety of any procedure or device they recommend to pregnant women. This includes x ray equipment, surgical instruments and other equipment. This could cause serious harm for a baby when a doctor uses the equipment in error or does not calibrate it properly. This would be considered medical malpractice. When this happens it is important to seek out a medical malpractice lawyer as soon as you can. In certain states, you only have one year to file a medical negligence claim, so the earlier you start the process, the better.

Step 1. Step

Birth defects affect 1 in 33 babies born every year and are the most common cause of infant mortality. These conditions could be life-threatening, and they can cause long-term physical, mental and emotional difficulties. Scientists have, in some instances, identified the birth defects' causes in mothers' exposure to prescription or over-the-counter medicines, environmental toxins, maternal infections, complications during the birth and pregnancy or a family medical history or genetic disorders (like sickle cell disease PKU, sickle cell disease, or other genetic illnesses). In about 70% of cases, the reason is unknown.

Certain birth defects, including hearing loss or clubfoot, are easy to see and can be diagnosed at birth or in the first year of a child's life. Others, such as heart problems or developmental and intellectual disabilities are not as easily identified and require specialized tests.

Researchers are attempting to determine what can cause birth defects and how some of them can be prevented. Women who smoke, drink or consume illegal substances while pregnant are at greater risk of having a child born with certain defects. Women with a history of family members that includes genetic disorders that are passed down through generations may wish to speak with a genetic counselor prior to trying to get pregnant. They should also use the March of Dimes family health history form to gather information about medical conditions that can be found in their families and discuss it with their doctor or a genetic counselor.