10 Meetups Around Birth Defect Litigation You Should Attend

Why You Should Hire a Birth Defect Lawyer

If your child was born with a birth deformity, it can be devastating for your family and you. Therapy costs, medical bills and other losses can quickly add up.

A Hyattsville birth defect lawyer can assist you in filing claim for reimbursement for the costs of caring for your disabled child. Legal claims for birth defects are complex and therefore it is crucial to seek legal advice immediately.

Medical Malpractice

Medical professionals must adhere to a set of guidelines when treating pregnant women and their babies. When a doctor's actions fall below this standard and result in a birth defect or injury, they can be held accountable for damage suffered by their patient. A DC lawyer with experience in lawsuits for birth defects can assist you in determining whether your child's illness could be due to a medical error during pregnancy or during delivery.

A doctor may also be responsible for a birth injury when they fail to recognize or appropriately respond to fetal distress. This can cause a number of serious issues, such as 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 a part of a person's genetic make-up and injuries are caused by something occurring during labor, pregnancy, or delivery. The most common injuries are Erb's Palsy where the nerves that control the infant's limbs and arms are stretched or torn. Another injury is caput succedaneum - an inflammation of the scalp. Both of these can lead to lifelong disability and require ongoing treatment, which can result in large medical expenses. A Washington, DC lawyer who is specialized in birth defects will provide a free consultation to examine your case and determine the best course for you and your baby.

Prescription Drugs

A birth defect attorney may be able help parents determine the root cause of the birth injury of a child. While many birth defects are due to genetics and factors during a mother's pregnancy but they can also happen due to medications. Certain common medications have a profound effect on fetuses especially during the first trimester of a pregnancy. This includes anti-nausea medication and NSAIDs as well as chemotherapy medications, certain antibiotics, and more. These drugs have been found to increase the risk of limb and brain deformities, heart defects and craniosynostois.

A doctor's job is to take into account the risks when prescribing medications for pregnant women. If doctors do not meet the standards of care required, they could be liable for medical negligence. Pharmaceutical companies can be held liable as well for not adequately informing mothers of the dangers associated with their products. For example, Zofran, a medication used to treat nausea in cancer patients, has been shown to significantly increase the risk of serious congenital defects during the first trimester of a pregnancy.

An attorney who specializes in birth defects can assist a family in obtaining compensation for medical expenses, loss of income and the quality of life. 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 law firms defect lawyer can bring a lawsuit on behalf of families of children who have congenital disabilities because of the negligence of businesses which expose pregnant women and drugs that can cause birth deformities. These lawyers are specially-trained to determine the root of 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 chemical exposures that lead to birth defects include the use of fungicides and metals as well as herbicides and other pesticides. These chemicals are referred to as Teratogens as they interfere with the healthy development of the fetus producing chemical changes that block normal cell function, birth defect Law firms or can cause organs that are not properly formed. These chemicals are found in a variety of settings including the manufacturing of semiconductors, metal cleaning and paint production.

Other chemicals that may cause birth defects include aliphatic hydrocarbons, such as dichloroethane or trichloroethylene perchloroethylene. These chemicals have been proven to cause heart defects in babies born to mothers who were exposed during their time in the womb.

Parents have filed suit against a number of companies involved in exposing the families of soldiers at Camp Lejeune to these harmful chemicals. Some of these birth defects lawyers have won substantial settlements for families who had children born with serious defects as a result of the toxic chemical exposures at the base.

Environmental Exposure

Certain birth defects are caused by a combination of medical negligence as well as environmental conditions or chemicals. If a family suspects that the birth defect of their child could be due to medical malpractice, prescription drug overdose or exposure to harmful chemicals, they should speak with a DC birth injury lawyer to discuss the matter.

If pregnant women inhale or absorb contaminants from their environment and then develop birth defects. These chemicals are referred to as Teratogens. More than 4 million chemicals can be found in our food, air and water. Certain of these chemicals are harmful to pregnant women.

For example, arsenic in drinking water and cadmium from coal that is contaminated may cause various birth defects and health problems. Certain birth defects can also be linked to industrial solvents like benzene (a metal degreaser) as well as toluene (a solvent for plastics) and trichloroethylene. Glycol-ethers are also known to increase the risk of birth defects in women. These chemicals are used for the manufacture of semiconductors, silicon chip displays and video displays.

The experienced birth defect attorneys at LK have brought many lawsuits on behalf of children suffering from a wide range of birth defects as a result of wrongful toxic and chemical exposure at workplaces or in their homes. These lawsuits typically require complex scientific analysis and expert witnesses, such as toxicologists and epidemiologists, geneticists, embryologists and occupational medicine experts.