Why You Should Hire a Birth Defect Lawyer

If your child was born with a birth defect this can be devastating for you and your entire family. Medical bills, therapy costs and other expenses can quickly mount up.

A Hyattsville birth defect lawyer could help you file a claim to recover compensation for the costs of caring for your child with disabilities. Legal claims for birth defects are a bit nebulous, so it is important to seek legal advice immediately.

Medical Malpractice

Medical professionals must follow a standard of care when treating pregnant women and their infants. When a doctor's actions are in violation of this standard and result in birth defects or injuries, they can be held accountable for damage suffered by their patient. A DC lawyer who has expertise in lawsuits for birth defects can assist you in determining whether your child's condition was caused by a medical mistake during pregnancy or delivery.

A doctor may also be held liable for birth defect lawsuits - Https://gokseong.multiiq.com, injuries if they fail to recognize fetal distress and don't respond appropriately. This can cause a number of serious complications, including hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) and brain injuries, such as cerebral palsy.

The difference between a birth defect and a birth injury is that defects are part of a person's genetic makeup, while injuries are caused due to something happening during pregnancy, labor, or delivery. A possible injury is Erb's spalsy where the nerves that control the infant's arms and limbs are stretched or torn. Another injury is caput succedaneum - swelling of the scalp. Both of these could lead to lifelong disability and require ongoing treatment, which can result in hefty medical costs. A Washington, DC lawyer who is specialized in birth defects will offer a free consultation to look over your case and determine the most appropriate course for you and your baby.

Prescription Drugs

A birth defect lawyer may be able help parents determine the reason behind a child's birth defect. Many birth defects result from genes or other factors that occur during pregnancy. However, 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. These include anti-nausea medications, NSAIDs, chemotherapy medications, certain antibiotics, and more. These drugs have been proven to increase the risk of developing limb and brain defects, heart defects, and craniosynostosis.

It is the professional responsibility of doctors to be aware of the risks when prescribing medication for pregnant women. If doctors do not follow this standard of care, then they may be held liable for malpractice. Pharma companies can also be held responsible for not adequately informing mothers about the dangers of their medication. For example, Zofran, a medication used to treat nausea in cancer patients, has been found to significantly increase the risk of congenital defects that are major in the first trimester of pregnancy.

A birth defect lawyer can assist a family receive reimbursement for future and ongoing medical expenses that result from the injury or disability, in addition to loss of income and quality of life. This could include hospital costs as well as 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 with congenital disabilities that result from the negligence of businesses which expose pregnant women to chemicals or drugs that cause birth defects. These lawyers are specially trained to discover the cause of the birth defect in order to file a lawsuit against companies who expose mothers to teratogens while they are at work or in their home.

Some of the chemical exposures that can lead to birth defects include metals, fungicides, herbicides and other pesticides. These chemicals are referred to as teratogens due to their impact on the healthy growth of the fetus causing chemical changes that prevent normal cell function or create malformed organs. These chemicals can be used in a variety of locations, such as metal cleaning and semiconductor manufacturing.

Other chemicals that can cause birth defects are aliphatic chlorinated hydrocarbons such as perchloroethylene, trichloroethylene and dichloroethane. These chemicals are known to cause birth defects in the heart in babies born to mothers exposed during their time in the womb.

Parents have filed lawsuits against several companies that were involved in exposing the families of soldiers at Camp Lejeune to these harmful chemicals. Some of the birth defect lawyers have gotten substantial settlements on behalf of families whose children were born with severe defects because of the toxic chemical exposures at the base.

Environmental Exposure

Some birth defects can be caused by a combination between medical negligence and environmental factors. If a family believes the birth defect of their child may be the result of medical negligence, prescription drug abuse or exposure to harmful chemicals, they should consult an DC birth injury lawyer to discuss the matter.

Chemicals and birth defect lawsuits other substances in the environment can cause birth defects of a serious nature when they are consumed by or absorbed by pregnant women. These chemicals are called teratogens. More than 4 million chemicals can be found in our food, air and water. Some of these chemicals could be harmful to pregnant women.

For instance, arsenic in drinking water and cadmium from coal that has been contaminated can trigger numerous birth defects, as well as other health issues. Industrial solvents such as benzene toluene and trichloroethylene (a metal degreaser) are also associated with certain birth defects. Glycol-ethers also increase the risk of birth defects among women. These chemicals are used to manufacture semiconductors, silicon chip displays and video displays.

Our experienced attorneys for birth defects have filed numerous lawsuits on 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 often involve complicated scientific analysis and expert witnesses, such as toxicologists, epidemiologists, Birth Defect Lawsuits geneticists, embryologists and occupational medicine experts.