Why You Should Hire a Birth Defect Lawyer

If your child was born with a birth defect this can be devastating for you and your family. Therapy costs, medical bills and other losses can quickly mount up.

A Hyattsville lawyer who specializes in birth defects could help you claim compensation to cover the costs of caring for your disabled children. Legal claims for birth defects are complex and therefore it is vital to seek legal advice whenever you can.

Medical Malpractice

Medical professionals are required to follow a standard when treating pregnant women or their babies. If a doctor's actions are in violation of this standard and cause birth defects or injuries the doctor could be held responsible for injuries suffered by their patient. A DC lawyer who has experience in birth defects lawsuits can help determine whether your child's condition was caused by a medical mistake during pregnancy or delivery.

A doctor may also be accountable for an injury to the fetus if they fail to recognize or adequately respond to fetal distress. This can cause a number of serious issues, including hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) and brain injuries such as cerebral palsy.

Birth injuries differ from birth defects in that they are caused by circumstances during pregnancy, delivery or labor. Injuries can result from issues like Erb's syndrome, which occurs when the nerves that stimulate 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 can lead to a permanent disability, and ongoing treatment will cost lots of money. A Washington, DC birth defect lawyer will provide a no-cost initial consultation to examine your situation and determine the best course of action for you and your child.

Prescription Drugs

A birth defect lawyer might be able to assist parents identify the cause of a child's birth injury, or defect. While many birth defects are due to genetics and the factors that influence the pregnancy of a mother, they can also occur as a result of medication. Certain common medications have a significant effect on fetuses, especially in the first trimester of a pregnancy. These include anti-nausea drugs such as NSAIDs, chemotherapy medicines as well as certain antibiotics, and many more. These drugs have been found to increase the risk of developing limb and brain deformities, heart defects, and craniosynostois.

It is the responsibility of a doctor to consider these risks when prescribing medicines for pregnant women. When doctors fail to meet this standard of care, they could be held accountable for medical negligence. Pharmaceutical companies can be held accountable for not adequately informing mothers of the dangers associated with their drugs. For example, Zofran, a medication used to treat nausea in cancer patients, has been shown to significantly increase the risk of major congenital problems in the first trimester of pregnancy.

An attorney for birth defects can help a family get compensation for medical expenses, income loss and the quality of life. This could include hospital expenses physician's fees, pharmaceutical costs, and other expenses, in addition to assistive devices, and therapy.

Chemical Exposure

A birth defect lawyer could bring a lawsuit for families of children who suffer from congenital disabilities because from the negligence of companies which expose pregnant women and other drugs that cause birth deformities. These lawyers are specially trained to find out what caused the birth defect so that they can bring a lawsuit against companies that expose mothers to teratogens during the time they work or at their homes.

Metals, fungicides, herbicides and pesticides are among the chemicals that can cause birth defects. These chemicals are called Teratogens as they interfere with the development of the fetus by making chemical changes that inhibit normal cell function or lead to malformed organs. These chemicals are found in a variety of situations, such as the manufacturing of semiconductors and cleaning of metals.

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

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

Environmental Exposure

Certain birth defects may be caused by a combination of medical negligence and environmental conditions. If a family suspects that a child's birth defects may be due to medical negligence, prescription drug overdose, or exposure to harmful chemicals, they should consult a DC birth injury lawyer to discuss their case.

If pregnant women ingest or absorb pollutants from the environment and then develop birth defects. Teratogens are the names given to these substances. Over 4 million chemicals are present in our air, food and water, and some of them can be harmful if they come into contact with a woman who is pregnant.

Arsenic found in drinking water or cadmium in coal that has been contaminated for instance, could cause birth defects and other health problems. Industrial solvents such as benzene toluene and trichloroethylene (a metal degreaser) are also associated with certain birth defects. Glycol-ethers are also known to increase the likelihood of birth defects occurring in women. These chemicals are used for the manufacture of semiconductors display devices, silicon chip displays and video displays.

LK's highly experienced birth defect lawyers have filed a variety of lawsuits on behalf of children who suffer from a wide range of birth defects caused by the wrongful exposure to chemicals and toxic substances at workplaces or in their homes. These lawsuits often involve an extensive scientific analysis as well as experts, such as toxicologists as well as epidemiologists, geneticists occupational medicine experts and embryologists.