Why You Should Concentrate On Improving Birth Defect Litigation

Why You Should Hire a Birth Defect Lawyer

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

A Hyattsville birth defect lawyer could assist you in filing an action to collect compensation for the costs of caring for your child with disabilities. Legal claims for birth defects are complicated and therefore it is vital to seek legal advice as soon as you can.

Medical Malpractice

Medical professionals must adhere to a standard of care when treating pregnant women and their infants. A doctor can be held accountable for any damages when their actions cause birth defects or injuries. A DC lawyer who is experienced in birth defect lawsuits can help you determine whether your child's illness could be due to an error in medical care during pregnancy or the birth.

A doctor birth defect lawsuits may be held accountable for birth injuries if they fail recognize fetal distress and don't respond appropriately. This can result in various serious problems, including hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy as well as brain injuries like cerebral palsy.

The difference between birth defects and birth injury is that defects are part of a person's genetic makeup and injuries are caused by something occurring during pregnancy, labor, or birth. Injuries can be caused by Erb's palsy, where the nerves controlling the infant's arms and legs are stretched or torn. Another type of injury is caput succedaneum which is an increase in the size of the scalp. Both of them can cause permanent disability and ongoing treatment can cost a significant amount of money. A Washington, DC birth defect lawyer can provide a free initial consultation to examine your case and determine the most appropriate way to proceed for you and your child.

Prescription Drugs

A birth defect lawyer may be able to help parents identify the root of the birth injury or defect. Many birth defects are caused by genes or other factors that occur during pregnancy. However, certain medications can also cause birth defects. A number of commonly used medications have a significant effect on fetuses, particularly in the first trimester of pregnancy. This includes anti-nausea medication such as NSAIDs, chemotherapy medicines such as certain antibiotics and many more. These drugs have been found to increase the risk of limb and brain deformities, heart defects and craniosynostois.

It is a doctor's professional duty to be aware of these risks when prescribing medications for women who are pregnant. If doctors fail to meet this standard of care, they could be held accountable for medical malpractice. Pharmaceutical companies could be held accountable for not adequately warning mothers about the risks associated with their drugs. 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 the first trimester of pregnancy.

A birth defect lawyer can help families receive compensation for future and current medical expenses resulting from the disability or injury as well as loss of income and quality of life. This could include hospital expenses physician's fees, pharmaceutical costs and other expenses as well assistive devices and therapy.

Chemical Exposure

A birth defect lawyer can file a lawsuit on behalf of the families of children suffering from congenital disabilities resulting from the negligence of businesses that expose pregnant women chemicals or drugs that cause birth defects. These lawyers are specially trained to determine the reason for birth defects, so that they can bring a suit against companies who expose pregnant women to teratogens either at work or at home.

Some of the chemical exposures that can lead to birth defects are metals, fungicides, herbicides and other pesticides. These chemicals are called Teratogens because they affect the development of a healthy foetus by causing chemical changes that cause abnormal organs or block normal cell function. These chemicals are found in a variety of settings including manufacturing of semiconductors, cleaning of metals and paint production.

Other chemicals that can cause birth defects are hydrocarbons that are aliphatic, such as trichloroethylene perchloroethylene or dichloroethane. These chemicals have been found to cause birth problems, including cardiac disorders, in babies born to mothers who were exposed to them in the womb.

Parents have filed lawsuits against several firms that were responsible for the exposure of families of soldiers at Camp Lejeune to these harmful chemicals. Some of these birth defect lawyers have secured significant settlements for families who have children who were born with serious defects as a result of the toxic chemical exposures on the base.

Environmental Exposure

Some birth defects are caused by a combination of medical negligence and environmental factors. If a family suspects that their child's birth defect may be a result of medical negligence, prescription drug abuse or exposure to harmful chemicals, they should talk to a DC birth injury lawyer to discuss the issue.

Chemicals and birth Defect Lawsuits 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 air, food and water and some are harmful if they come into contact with a woman who is pregnant.

For instance, arsenic from drinking water, and cadmium from coal that is contaminated may cause various birth defects and other health issues. Industrial solvents, such as benzene toluene and trichloroethylene (a metal degreaser) are also linked to certain birth defects. Glycol-ethers are also known to increase the likelihood of birth defects occurring in women. These chemicals are used for the manufacture of semiconductors display devices, silicon chip displays and video displays.

Our experienced attorneys for birth defects have filed numerous lawsuits on the name of children who suffered from many birth defects as a result of accidental exposure to toxic chemicals or chemicals at work or at home. These lawsuits typically involve sophisticated scientific analysis and expert witnesses, including toxicologists and epidemiologists, geneticists, occupational medicine experts and embryologists.