Why You Should Hire a Birth Defect Lawyer

If your child was born with an anomaly in the birth, it can have a devastating effect on you and your family. The cost of therapy, medical bills and other losses can quickly add up.

A Hyattsville lawyer that specializes in birth defects can help you seek compensation for the cost of taking care of your disabled children. A legal claim for birth defects may be complex, so you should seek legal advice whenever you can.

Medical Malpractice

Medical professionals are required to adhere to a certain standard when treating pregnant women or their infants. If a doctor's actions are not in line with this standard and cause birth defects or injuries, they can be held responsible for harms suffered by their patient. A DC lawyer with experience in lawsuits involving birth defects can assist you in determining whether your child's condition could be the result of an error in medical care during pregnancy or delivery.

A doctor could also be accountable for a birth injury when they fail to identify or appropriately respond to fetal distress. This can lead to many serious problems like hypoxic-ischemic brain injury and hypoxic encephalopathy such as cerebral palsy.

The difference between birth defects and birth injury is that defects are a part of a person's genetic make-up and injuries are triggered by something occurring during labor, pregnancy, or birth. The causes of injuries include ailments like Erb's palsy that occurs when the nerves that energize and control the arms of an infant are stretched or ruptured during birth as well as caput succedaneum which is a swelling of the scalp. Both can result in a lifelong disability, and ongoing treatment will cost a lot of money. A Washington, DC lawyer who specializes in birth defects can provide a no-cost consultation to look over your case and decide on the best course for you and your baby.

Prescription Drugs

An attorney for birth defects may be able to assist parents in determining the cause for a child's birth defect. While many birth defects are due to genetics and other factors that occur during the mother's pregnancy, they can also occur because of medications. A variety of common medications can have a significant impact on fetuses and babies, particularly during the first trimester of pregnancy. They include anti-nausea medicines and NSAIDs as well as chemotherapy medications such as certain antibiotics and many more. These medications have been proven to increase the risk of limb and heart defects, brain deformities, and craniosynostosis.

A doctor's job is to consider the risks when prescribing medications for women who are pregnant. If doctors do not follow this standard of care, then they could be held accountable for malpractice. Pharmaceutical companies can be held liable as well for not adequately informing mothers of the dangers associated with their drugs. For instance, Zofran, a medication used to treat nausea in cancer patients, has been proven to significantly increase the risk of congenital defects that are major in the first trimester of pregnancy.

An attorney for birth defects can assist a family to obtain compensation for medical expenses, loss of income and quality of life. This could include hospital, doctor's or pharmaceutical expenses, as well as assistive devices and treatments.

Chemical Exposure

A birth defect lawyer may bring an action on behalf of families of children who suffer from congenital disabilities that result from the negligence of companies that expose pregnant women chemicals or drugs that cause birth defects. These lawyers are specially-trained to identify the cause of the birth defects so that they can file a lawsuit against companies that expose pregnant women to teratogens either at workplace or at home.

Some of the exposures to chemicals that lead to birth defects include the fungicides, metals, herbicides and other pesticides. These chemicals are referred to as Teratogens since they interfere with the healthy development of the fetus by making chemical changes that inhibit normal cell function or create organs that are not properly formed. These chemicals are present in a variety settings, including metal cleaning and semiconductor manufacturing.

Other chemicals that can cause birth defects are aliphatic chlorinated hydrocarbons, such as perchloroethylene, trichloroethylene or 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 the families of soldiers at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, to harmful chemicals. Some of the birth defect lawyers have secured significant settlements for families who had their children born with severe birth defects because of the toxic chemical exposures at the base.

Environmental Exposure

Some birth defects are caused by the combination of medical negligence as well as environmental conditions or chemicals. If a family suspects a child's birth defects may be the result of medical negligence or prescription drug overdose or exposure to harmful chemical or chemical substances, they should speak with an DC birth injury attorney to discuss their case.

Chemicals and other substances in the environment can cause serious birth defects when they are consumed or taken in by pregnant women. These substances are known as teratogens. More than 4 million chemicals can be found in our air, food and water. Certain of these chemicals can be harmful to pregnant women.

For instance, arsenic in drinking water and cadmium in coal that is contaminated can cause a variety of birth defects and other health issues. Industrial solvents like trichloroethylene, toluene, and benzene (a metal degreaser) are also linked with certain birth defects. Glycol-ethers can increase the risk of birth defects in women. These chemicals are used for the manufacture of semiconductors, silicon chip displays and video displays.

LK's experienced birth defect attorneys have filed numerous lawsuits on behalf of children suffering from a wide range of birth defects caused by the wrongful exposure to chemicals and toxic substances at work or in their homes. These lawsuits require complex scientific analyses and expert witnesses such as toxicologists and epidemiologists.