From Around The Web The 20 Most Amazing Infographics About Birth Defect Litigation

Why You Should Hire a Birth Defect Lawyer

If your child is born with a birth defect, it can cause a lot of grief for your family as well as you. Therapy costs, medical bills and other losses can quickly accumulate.

A Hyattsville birth defect lawyer could assist you in filing claim for compensation for the expenses of taking care of your disabled child. Legal claims for birth defects are a bit nebulous and it is essential to seek legal advice as soon as you can.

Medical Malpractice

Medical professionals must adhere to a set of standards when treating pregnant women or their infants. When a doctor's actions are in violation of this standard and result in an injury or birth defect or injury, they could be held accountable for the harms suffered by their patient. A DC lawyer who has expertise in lawsuits for birth defects can determine whether your child's condition was caused by a medical error Birth defect Law firms during pregnancy or delivery.

A doctor could also be the cause of an injury that occurs during birth if they fail to identify or properly respond to fetal distress. This can lead to numerous serious issues, including hypoxic-ischemic brain injury and hypoxic encephalopathy like cerebral palsy.

The distinction 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 birth. Injuries can include ailments like Erb's palsy that occurs when the nerves which energize and control the arms of a newborn are stretched or torn during birth, and caput succedaneum, an increase in the size of the scalp. Both of these can result in permanent disability and require ongoing treatment, resulting in large medical bills. A Washington, DC lawyer who is skilled in birth defect law firm defects can provide a free consultation to analyze your case and determine the best course for you and your baby.

Prescription Drugs

A birth defect lawyer might be able to assist parents in determining the reason behind a child's birth injury. Many birth defects result from the genetics of the baby or other factors during pregnancy. However, medications can also cause birth defects. Certain commonly used medications can have a negative impact on the fetuses. This is particularly relevant in the first three months of pregnancy. They include anti-nausea medicines and NSAIDs as well as chemotherapy medications, certain antibiotics, and more. These drugs have been shown to increase the risk of developing limb and brain defects, heart defects and craniosynostois.

It is the professional responsibility of doctors to be aware of the potential risks when prescribing medications for women who are pregnant. If doctors fail to adhere to this standard of care, they could be held accountable for negligence. Pharmaceutical companies can be held liable as well for not properly warning mothers of the dangers that come with their products. For example, Zofran, a medication used to treat nausea in cancer patients, has been found to significantly increase the risk of major congenital problems in the first trimester of pregnancy.

A birth defect lawsuits defect attorney can assist a family to obtain compensation for medical expenses, loss of income and the quality of life. This could include doctor's, hospital or pharmaceutical costs, in addition to assistive devices and therapies.

Chemical Exposure

A birth defect lawyer could sue parents of children with congenital disabilities because of the negligence of companies exposing pregnant women to chemicals and drugs that can cause birth deformities. They are trained to determine the cause of birth defects, so that they can file a lawsuit against companies who expose pregnant women to teratogens at work or in their home.

Some of the chemical exposures that contribute to birth defects are metals, fungicides, herbicides and other pesticides. These chemicals are referred to as Teratogens since they influence the healthy development of a embryo through chemical changes that can cause abnormal organs, or disrupt normal cell function. These chemicals can be found in various settings, including 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 perchloroethylene, trichloroethylene and dichloroethane. These chemicals are known to cause cardiac birth defects in babies born to mothers who were exposed in the womb.

Parents have filed lawsuits in order to make companies accountable for exposing families of soldiers at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, to harmful chemicals. Some of these birth defects lawyers have won substantial settlements for families who had children born with severe defects resulting from the toxic chemical exposures at the base.

Environmental Exposure

Some birth defects are caused by a combination of medical negligence and environmental conditions. If a family suspects that the birth defect of their child could be due to medical negligence, prescription drug overdose or exposure to harmful chemicals, they should contact an DC birth injury lawyer to discuss the situation.

If pregnant women ingest or absorb contaminants from their environment they could develop serious birth defects. Teratogens are the name for these substances. More than 4 million chemicals are present in our food, air and water and some are harmful if they come into contact with pregnant women.

Arsenic in drinking waters or cadmium from coal that is contaminated for instance, could cause birth defects as well as other health issues. Certain Birth defect Law firms defects are also related to industrial solvents, such as benzene (a metal degreaser), toluene (a solvent for plastics) and trichloroethylene. Glycol-ethers, which are utilized in the production of silicon chips, semiconductors and video displays are recognized to increase a woman's chance of having birth defects.

Our experienced attorneys for birth defects have filed a variety of lawsuits on behalf of children suffering from various birth defects as a result of an unintentional exposure to chemicals or toxic substances at work or at home. These lawsuits involve complicated scientific analyses and expert witnesses, such as toxicologists and epidemiologists.