Why You Should Hire a Birth Defect Lawyer

If your child is born with a birth deformity, it can be devastating for the entire family. Medical bills, therapy costs and other losses can quickly become a burden.

A Hyattsville lawyer who specializes in birth defects could help you claim compensation for the costs of taking care of your disabled children. Legal claims for birth defects are complex, so it is important to seek legal advice whenever you can.

Medical Malpractice

Medical professionals must follow a set of guidelines when treating pregnant women and their infants. Doctors can be held liable for damages if their actions result in birth defects or injuries. A DC lawyer with experience in birth defects lawsuits will help you determine if your child's condition was caused by a medical mistake during pregnancy or the birth.

A doctor may also be held accountable for birth injuries if they fail to detect fetal distress or don't respond appropriately. This could lead to various serious problems, including hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy as well as brain injuries like cerebral palsy.

Birth injuries differ from birth defects in the sense that they are caused by events during pregnancy, delivery, or labor. These injuries can be caused by conditions like Erb's Palsy that occurs when the nerves which energize and control an infant's arms are stretched or damaged during birth and the caput succedaneum is an increase in the size of the scalp. Both of them can cause permanent disability, and continued treatment will cost a great deal of money. A Washington, DC lawyer who is an expert in birth defects may offer a free consultation in order to review your case, and determine the most appropriate course for you and your baby.

Prescription Drugs

A birth defect lawyer might be able to assist parents identify the root of a child's birth injury or defect. While many birth defects are caused by the genetics of the mother's pregnancy but they can also happen due to medications. A variety of common medications can have a negative impact on foetuses. This is especially relevant in the first three months of pregnancy. Anti-nausea drugs, NSAIDs, and chemotherapy medications are among the most frequently used. These drugs have been proven to increase the risk of limb and brain defects, heart defects and craniosynostois.

It is the professional responsibility of doctors to consider the potential risks when prescribing medications for women who are pregnant. When doctors fail to meet the standards of care required, they could be held liable for medical negligence. Pharmaceutical companies can be held accountable for failing to adequately warn mothers of the dangers associated with their drugs. For instance, Zofran, a medication used to treat nausea in cancer patients, has been found to significantly increase the risk of major congenital defects in the first trimester of pregnancies.

A birth defect lawyer can help families get reimbursement for future and ongoing medical expenses related to the injury or disability, in addition to loss of earnings and quality of life. This can include hospital costs medical expenses, doctor's fees and pharmaceutical costs and other expenses as well as assistive devices and therapy.

Chemical Exposure

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

Some of the chemical exposures that lead to birth defects include the use of fungicides and metals as well as herbicides and other pesticides. These chemicals are known as teratogens due to their impact on the healthy development of the fetus by making chemical changes that inhibit normal cell function or cause malformed organs. These chemicals can be present in a variety situations, such as semiconductor manufacturing and metal cleaning.

Other harmful chemicals that could cause birth defects are aliphatic hydrocarbons with aliphatic chlorinated chemistry such as trichloroethylene, perchloroethylene and dichloroethane. These chemicals have been known 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 exposing the families of soldiers at Camp Lejeune to these harmful chemicals. Some of the birth defect lawyers have obtained substantial settlements on behalf families whose children were born with severe defects because of exposure to toxic chemicals at the base.

Environmental Exposure

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

If pregnant women consume or absorb contaminants from the surrounding environment they could develop serious birth defects. These substances are referred to as teratogens. More than 4 million chemicals are found in our air, food and water. Some of these chemicals are harmful to pregnant women.

For example, arsenic in drinking water and cadmium from coal that is contaminated may cause numerous birth defects and other health problems. Certain birth defects are also caused by industrial solvents such as benzene (a metal degreaser) and toluene (a solvent for plastics) and trichloroethylene. Glycol-ethers also increase the chance of birth defects in women. These chemicals are used to manufacture semiconductors, silicon chip displays and video displays.

LK's highly experienced birth defect lawyers have brought numerous lawsuits on behalf of children who suffer from a range of birth defects caused by unintentional exposure to toxic chemicals and chemicals at work or at home. These lawsuits involve complex scientific analyses and expert witnesses such as toxicologists and epidemiologists.