Why You Should Hire a Birth Defect Lawyer

If your child was born with an anomaly in the birth it could have a devastating impact on you and your family. Therapy costs, medical bills and other losses can quickly accumulate.

A Hyattsville birth defect lawyer could assist you in filing claim for reimbursement for the costs of caring for 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 certain standard 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 the doctor could be held accountable for the damage suffered by their patient. A DC lawyer with experience in birth defect lawsuits can help you determine if your child's illness could have been caused by an error birth defect lawyer made by the medical professional during the pregnancy or delivery.

A doctor may be held accountable for birth injuries if they fail to recognize fetal distress and don't respond appropriately. This can cause a number of serious issues, such as hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) and cerebral palsy.

The difference between a birth defect and a birth defect attorney injury is that defects are a part of a person's genetic make-up and injuries are caused by something that happens during labor, pregnancy, or delivery. These injuries can be caused by conditions such as Erb's palsy which is caused when the nerves that energize and control the infant's arms are stretched or torn during the birth process as well as caput succedaneum which is an increase in the size of the scalp. Both of them can lead to lifelong disability and require ongoing treatment, resulting in large medical bills. A Washington, DC lawyer who is specialized in birth defects will offer a free consultation in order to examine your case and determine the most appropriate course for you and your baby.

Prescription Drugs

A birth defect lawyer might be able help parents determine the root cause of a child's birth injury. Many birth defects result from genetics or factors during pregnancy. However, medications can also cause birth defects. Certain common medications have a significant effect on fetuses especially during the first trimester of a pregnancy. They include anti-nausea medicines such as NSAIDs, chemotherapy medicines including certain antibiotics, and more. These medications have been proven to increase the risk of developing limb and brain defects, heart defects, and craniosynostosis.

It is a doctor's professional duty to be aware of these risks when prescribing medications for pregnant women. If doctors do not meet the requirements of this standard of care, they could be liable for medical malpractice. Pharmaceutical companies can be held liable as well for not properly warning mothers of the dangers associated with their medicines. For example, Zofran, a medication used to treat nausea in cancer patients, has been found to significantly increase the risk of congenital defects that are major in the first trimester of a pregnancy.

An attorney who specializes in birth defects can assist a family in obtaining compensation for medical expenses, loss of income and quality of life. This could include doctor's, hospital pharmaceutical, and other costs, as well as assistive devices and therapies.

Chemical Exposure

A birth defect lawyer can bring a lawsuit on behalf of families of children who suffer from congenital disabilities because from the negligence of companies who expose pregnant women to chemicals and other drugs that cause birth deformities. These lawyers are specially trained to determine the cause of the birth defect in order to sue companies who expose mothers to teratogens during the time they are at work or in their home.

Some of the chemical exposures that contribute to birth defect law firms defects include the fungicides, metals, herbicides and other pesticides. These chemicals are referred to as teratogens, because they can affect the healthy development a embryo through chemical changes that can cause abnormal organs, or disrupt normal cell function. These chemicals are found in diverse settings like manufacturing of semiconductors, metal cleaning and paint production.

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

Parents have filed lawsuits against a variety of companies who were responsible for exposing the families of soldiers at Camp Lejeune to these harmful chemicals. Some of the birth defect lawyers have secured significant settlements on behalf of families whose children were born with severe birth defects because of exposure to toxic chemicals at the base.

Environmental Exposure

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

If pregnant women inhale or absorb contaminants from their environment, they can cause serious birth defects. These substances are referred to as Teratogens. More than 4 million chemicals can be found in our air, food and water. Some of these chemicals are harmful to pregnant women.

For instance, arsenic in drinking water as well as cadmium derived from coal that is contaminated can cause a variety of birth defects as well as other health issues. Industrial solvents like trichloroethylene, birth defect lawyer benzene, and toluene (a metal degreaser) are also associated with certain birth defects. Glycol-ethers, which are used in the production of semiconductors, silicon chips and video displays are recognized to increase a woman's risk of birth defects.

LK's experienced attorneys for birth defects have filed a variety of lawsuits on the name of children who suffered from a variety of birth defects due to wrongful toxic or chemical exposure at work or at home. These lawsuits typically require complex scientific analysis and experts as witnesses, like toxicologists, epidemiologists, geneticists, occupational medicine specialists and embryologists.