The Ultimate Glossary Of Terms About Birth Defect Litigation

Why You Should Hire a Birth Defect Lawyer

If your child was born with a birth deformity it can be devastating for your family as well as you. Medical bills, therapy costs and other expenses can quickly add up.

A Hyattsville lawyer that specializes in birth defects could help to file a claim for compensation for the costs of taking care of your disabled children. A legal claim for birth defects could be complicated, so you should seek legal advice whenever you can.

Medical Malpractice

Medical professionals are required to adhere to a standard of care when treating pregnant women or their babies. When a doctor's actions are in violation of this standard and result in an injury or birth defect the doctor could be held liable for the damages sustained by their patient. A DC lawyer with experience in lawsuits involving birth defects can assist you in determining whether your child's health condition may have been caused by an error in medical care during pregnancy or the birth.

A doctor could also be the cause of birth injuries if they fail to recognize or properly respond to distress of the fetus. This can result in a number serious problems including hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy and birth defect attorneys brain injuries like cerebral palsy.

Birth injuries differ from birth defects in that they are caused by circumstances during pregnancy, delivery or labor. Injuries can include conditions such as Erb's palsy, which occurs when the nerves that energize and control the arms of a newborn are stretched or torn during the birth process as well as caput succedaneum which is an increase in the size of the scalp. Both of them can cause permanent disability and require ongoing treatment, which can result in hefty medical costs. A Washington, DC birth defect lawyer can provide a free initial consultation to examine your case and determine the best way to proceed for you and your child.

Prescription Drugs

An attorney for birth defects may be able to help parents determine the root of an infant's birth injury. While many birth defect law firm defects are due to the genetics of the mother's pregnancy, they can also occur because of medications. Certain commonly used medications can have negative effects on the fetuses. This is especially applicable in the early months of pregnancy. Anti-nausea medication, NSAIDs and chemotherapy medications are among the most common. These medications have been linked to an increase in risk of deformities in the limbs and birth defect attorneys heart defects, brain defects and craniosynostois.

A doctor's job is to take into consideration the risks when prescribing medications for women who are pregnant. If doctors do not follow this standard of care, they may be held liable for malpractice. Pharmaceutical companies could be held liable as well for not adequately warning mothers of the risks associated with their medicines. For example, Zofran, a medication used to treat nausea in cancer patients, has been demonstrated to significantly increase the risk of congenital defects that are major in first trimester pregnancies.

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

Chemical Exposure

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

Metals, fungicides herbicides and pesticides are among the chemicals that can cause birth defects. These chemicals are referred to as teratogens due to the fact that they affect the development of a healthy embryo through chemical changes that lead to abnormal organs, or disrupt normal cell function. These chemicals are present in diverse settings like manufacturing of semiconductors, cleaning of metals and paint production.

Other chemicals that can cause birth defects are aliphatic chlorinated hydrocarbons such as perchloroethylene, trichloroethylene and dichloroethane. These chemicals have been found to cause birth defects, such as cardiac defects in babies born to mothers exposed to them while in the womb.

Parents have filed lawsuits in order to expose companies to liability for exposing families of soldiers at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina exposed to harmful chemicals. Some of these birth defect lawyers have secured substantial settlements for families who had children born with serious defects as a result of the toxic chemical exposures on the base.

Environmental Exposure

Some birth defects could be caused by a combination between medical negligence and environmental conditions. If a family is concerned that the birth defect in their child could be due to medical negligence, prescription drug overdose or exposure to toxic chemicals, they should talk to a DC birth injury lawyer to discuss the matter.

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

For instance, arsenic in drinking water and cadmium in contaminated coal can cause various birth defects and health issues. Certain birth defects are also caused by industrial solvents such as benzene (a metal degreaser) as well as toluene (a solvent for plastics) and trichloroethylene. Glycol ethers, which are employed in the manufacturing of silicon chips, semiconductors and video displays, are known to increase the risk of developing birth defects as well.

LK's experienced birth defect attorneys have filed a variety of lawsuits on behalf of children suffering from a range of birth defects due to unintentional exposure to toxic chemicals and chemicals at workplaces or at home. These lawsuits involve complicated scientific analyses and expert witnesses like toxicologists and epidemiologists.