Watch Out: What Birth Defect Litigation Is Taking Over And What Can We Do About It

Why You Should Hire a Birth Defect Lawyer

If your child is born with a birth deformity it can cause a lot of grief for your family as well as you. Medical bills, therapy costs and other expenses can quickly accumulate.

A Hyattsville lawyer with a specialization in birth defects could assist 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, which is why you should seek legal advice as soon as possible.

Medical Malpractice

Medical professionals must adhere to an appropriate standard of care when treating pregnant women and their babies. A doctor could be held accountable for any damages when their actions cause birth defects or injuries. A DC lawyer with experience in birth defect lawsuits can assist you in determining whether your child's condition could have been caused by an error in medical care during pregnancy or delivery.

A doctor can be held accountable for birth injuries if they fail to detect fetal distress or don't respond appropriately. This can result in a variety of serious issues, including hypoxic ischemic disorder (HIE) and brain injuries such as cerebral palsy.

Birth injuries differ from birth defects because they are caused by events during pregnancy, birth, or labor. The causes of injuries include ailments like Erb's palsy which is caused when the nerves that stimulate and control the infant's arms are stretched or torn during birth as well as caput succedaneum which is an increase in the size of the scalp. Both can result in a permanent disability and ongoing treatment will cost a lot of money. A Washington, DC birth defect lawyer can offer a no-cost initial consultation to look over your situation and determine the best method of action for you and your child.

Prescription Drugs

A birth defect lawyer may be able to help parents identify the root of a child's birth injury, or defect. While many birth defects are the result of genetics and the factors that influence a mother's pregnancy however, they may also occur due to medications. A variety of common medications can have a profound effect on fetuses, especially in the first trimester of pregnancy. Anti-nausea medications, Read Alot more NSAIDs and chemotherapy medications are among the most frequently used. These drugs have been found to increase the risk of limb and brain defects, heart defects, and craniosynostosis.

It is the responsibility of a doctor to consider the risks when prescribing medication for women who are pregnant. If doctors fail to follow this standard of care, they could be held accountable for negligence. Pharmaceutical companies can be held accountable for not adequately informing mothers about the risks associated with their medications. For instance, Zofran, a medication used to treat nausea in cancer patients, has been demonstrated to significantly increase the risk of serious congenital defects during first trimester pregnancies.

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 fees, doctor's fees, pharmaceutical costs and other expenses along with assistive devices and therapy.

Chemical Exposure

A birth defect lawyer can sue families of children who suffer from congenital disabilities as a result of the negligence of businesses exposing pregnant women to chemicals and other drugs that cause birth defects. These lawyers are specially trained to find out the reason for the birth defect so that they can bring a lawsuit against the companies that expose mothers to teratogens when they work or at their homes.

Some of the chemical exposures that lead to birth defects include the fungicides, metals, herbicides and other pesticides. These chemicals are known as teratogens due to their impact on the development of the fetus producing chemical changes that block normal cell function or create organs to be malformed. These chemicals are used in diverse settings like manufacturing of semiconductors, cleaning of metals and paint production.

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

Parents have filed lawsuits to expose companies to liability for the families of soldiers in Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, to harmful chemicals. Some of these birth defects lawyers have secured substantial settlements for families who had children born with severe defects resulting from the exposure to toxic chemicals at the base.

Environmental Exposure

Certain birth defects are caused by an unintended medical error as well as environmental conditions or chemicals. If a family believes that the birth defect of their child could be a result of medical negligence, prescription drug overdose or exposure to harmful chemicals, they should contact a DC birth injury lawyer to discuss the matter.

Chemicals and other substances in the environment can cause serious birth defects when they are consumed by or taken in by pregnant women. Teratogens are the term used to describe these chemicals. More than 4 million chemicals can be found in our air, food and water. Some of these chemicals may be harmful to pregnant women.

Arsenic in drinking waters or cadmium in contaminated coal for instance, can cause birth defects as well as other health problems. Industrial solvents like trichloroethylene, benzene, and toluene (a metal degreaser) are also associated with certain birth defects. Glycol ethers that are used in the manufacture of silicon chips, semiconductors and video displays, are recognized to increase a woman's risk of birth defects.

LK's experienced birth defect attorneys have brought many lawsuits on behalf of children who suffered from a variety of birth defects due to improper exposure to chemicals and toxic substances at workplaces or in their homes. These lawsuits often involve sophisticated scientific analysis and expert witnesses, including toxicologists or epidemiologists, geneticists occupational medicine specialists and embryologists.