Why You Should Hire a Birth Defect Lawyer

If your child was born with an anomaly in the birth this can have a devastating effect on you and your family. The cost of therapy, medical bills and other losses can quickly accumulate.

A Hyattsville birth defect lawyer can assist you in filing a claim to recover compensation for the costs of taking care of your child with disabilities. Legal claims for birth defects can be a little tangled and it is essential to seek legal advice whenever you can.

Medical Malpractice

Medical professionals must follow a standard when treating pregnant women or their infants. A doctor could be held liable for damages if their actions result in birth defects or injuries. A DC lawyer who has experience in birth defect lawsuits can help you determine whether your child's condition could be the result of an error in medical care during pregnancy or the birth.

A doctor may be held accountable for birth injuries if they fail recognize fetal distress and do not respond appropriately. This can result in numerous serious issues, including hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy as well as brain injuries such as cerebral palsy.

Birth injuries differ from birth defects in that they are caused by events during pregnancy, birth, or labor. Injuries can result from ailments like Erb's palsy which is caused when the nerves that power and control an infant's arms are stretched or torn during the birth process and caput succedaneum, an increase in the size of the scalp. Both of these can lead to lifelong disability and require ongoing treatment, which can result in hefty medical costs. A Washington, DC birth defect lawyer can offer a no-cost initial consultation to examine your case and determine the best way to proceed for you and your child.

Prescription Drugs

A birth defect lawyer may be able to help parents determine the cause of a child's birth injury or defect. While many birth defects are due to the genetics of the pregnancy of a mother, they can also occur as a result of medications. Certain common medications have a significant impact on fetuses, particularly in the first trimester of a pregnancy. These include anti-nausea drugs such as NSAIDs, chemotherapy medicines including certain antibiotics, and many more. These drugs have been linked to an increase in risk of limb defects and heart defects, brain defects and craniosynostois.

A doctor's job is to take into account these risks when prescribing medication for pregnant women. If doctors do not adhere to this standard of care, then they may be held liable for malpractice. Pharmaceutical companies can be held liable as well for not properly warning mothers of the dangers that come with their medicines. 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 a pregnancy.

A birth defect lawyer can assist family members receive reimbursement for future and ongoing medical expenses associated with the disability or injury in addition to loss of income and quality of life. This could include hospital expenses, doctor'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 families of children who suffer 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 the 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 exposures to chemicals that lead to birth defects include the fungicides, metals, herbicides and other pesticides. These chemicals are known as teratogens due to the fact that they affect the development of a healthy the fetus via chemical changes that cause abnormal organs or block normal cell function. These chemicals can be present in a variety environments, including the manufacturing of semiconductors and cleaning of metals.

Other hazardous chemicals that could cause birth defects are aliphatic chlorinated hydrocarbons such as trichloroethylene, perchloroethylene and dichloroethane. These chemicals are known to cause heart defects in babies born to mothers who were exposed in the womb.

Parents have filed lawsuits to hold companies accountable for the families of soldiers in Camp Lejeune, North Carolina exposed to harmful chemicals. Some of these birth defects lawyers have secured significant settlements for families who have children who were born with severe birth defects due to the toxic chemical exposures on the base.

Environmental Exposure

Some birth defects can be caused by a combination between medical negligence and environmental factors. If a family believes the birth defect of their child could result from medical malpractice, prescription drug overdose or exposure to harmful chemicals, they should contact a DC birth injury lawyer to discuss the matter.

Chemicals and other pollutants in the environment can cause birth defects of a serious nature when they are inhaled or absorbed by pregnant women. These substances are known as Teratogens. More than 4 million chemicals exist in our air, food and water Some of them could be harmful if they come into contact with pregnant women.

For example, arsenic in drinking water as well as cadmium derived from coal that is contaminated can cause numerous birth defects and health issues. Certain birth defects are associated with industrial solvents like benzene (a metal degreaser) as well as toluene (a solvent for plastics) and trichloroethylene. Glycol-ethers also increase the likelihood of birth defect law firm defects occurring in women. These chemicals are used to manufacture semiconductors, silicon chip displays and video displays.

LK's experienced birth defect attorneys have filed a variety of lawsuits on behalf of children suffering from a variety of birth defects as a result of the wrongful exposure to chemicals and toxic substances at work or at home. These lawsuits typically require sophisticated scientific analysis and expert witnesses, including toxicologists and epidemiologists, geneticists, occupational medicine specialists and embryologists.