Why You Should Hire a Birth Defect Lawyer

If your child was born with a birth defect, it can have a devastating impact on you and your family. Medical bills, therapy costs and other expenses can quickly mount up.

A Hyattsville lawyer who is specialized in birth defects could assist you seek reimbursement for the expenses of caring for your children with disabilities. A legal claim for birth defects could be complicated, so you should consult with a legal professional as soon as you can.

Medical Malpractice

Medical professionals must adhere to an appropriate standard of care when treating pregnant women and their babies. If a doctor's actions fall below this standard and result in a birth defect or injury, they can be held accountable for the damages sustained by their patient. A DC lawyer who has experience in lawsuits involving birth defects can help you determine if your child's illness could be due to an error in medical care during pregnancy or the birth.

A doctor could also be accountable for birth injuries if they fail in diagnosing or adequately respond to fetal distress. This can result in a number serious problems including hypoxic-ischemic brain injury and wichita falls birth Defect lawyer hypoxic encephalopathy like cerebral palsy.

The distinction between Wichita falls Birth defect Lawyer defects and birth injury is that defects are part of a person's genetic makeup and injuries are caused due to something happening during pregnancy, labor, or the birth. Injuries can be caused by Erb's palsy which occurs when the nerves that control the infant's arms and limbs are stretched or torn. Another form of injury is caput succedaneum - an inflammation of the scalp. Both of these could cause permanent disability and require ongoing treatment, resulting in large medical expenses. A Washington, DC lawyer who specializes in birth defects can offer a free consultation to review your case, Wichita Falls Birth Defect Lawyer and determine the most appropriate course for you and your baby.

Prescription Drugs

A birth defect lawyer may be able to assist parents in determining the root cause of a child's birth injury. Many birth defects are caused by genetics or factors during pregnancy. However, medications can also cause birth defects. Certain commonly used medications can have negative effects on the fetuses. This is especially evident in the initial three months of pregnancy. Anti-nausea medications, NSAIDs and chemotherapy medications are among the most common. These drugs have been linked with an increased chance of limb deformities, brain defects, heart defects and craniosynostois.

The duty of a doctor is to take into consideration these risks when prescribing medication for women who are pregnant. When doctors fail to meet the standards of care required, they could be liable for medical malpractice. Pharma companies may also be held responsible for not adequately informing mothers about the dangers that come with their medication. Zofran is a drug used to treat nausea among cancer patients, was found to increase the risk of major defects during the first trimester pregnancy.

A birth defect lawyer can help a family get compensation for medical expenses, income loss and the quality of life. This could include hospital costs physician's fees, pharmaceutical costs and other expenses as well as assistive devices and therapy.

Chemical Exposure

A birth defect lawyer may bring a lawsuit on behalf of families of children who suffer from congenital disabilities that result from the negligence of companies which expose pregnant women to chemicals or drugs that cause birth defects. These lawyers are specially trained to identify what caused the lake charles birth defect attorney defect so that they can bring a lawsuit against companies that expose mothers to teratogens during the time they work or at their homes.

Some of the chemical exposures that contribute 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 fetus through chemical changes that cause abnormal organs, or disrupt normal cell function. These chemicals are present in diverse settings like the manufacturing of semiconductors, metal cleaning and paint production.

Other chemicals that may cause birth defects are aliphatic hydrocarbons, such as dichloroethane and trichloroethylene perchloroethylene. These chemicals have been proven to cause heart defects 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 these birth defects lawyers have secured substantial settlements for families who had children born with severe birth defects due to the exposure to toxic chemicals on the base.

Environmental Exposure

Certain birth defects may be caused by a combination of 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 talk to an DC birth injury lawyer to discuss the issue.

Chemicals and other pollutants in the environment can cause birth defects of a serious nature if they are ingested or taken in by pregnant women. Teratogens are the name for these substances. More than 4 million chemicals are found in our air, food and water. Some of these chemicals can be dangerous to pregnant women.

Arsenic from drinking water or cadmium found in coal that has been contaminated for instance, could cause birth defects and other health issues. Industrial solvents like benzene, toluene and trichloroethylene (a metal degreaser) are also linked to certain birth defects. Glycol-ethers are also known for their ability to increase the chance of birth defects in women. These chemicals are used in the production of semiconductors display devices, silicon chip displays and video displays.

Our experienced attorneys for birth defects have filed many lawsuits in behalf of children suffering from various birth defects as a result of accidental exposure to toxic chemicals or chemicals at their workplace or home. These lawsuits typically involve complicated scientific analysis and expert witnesses, such as toxicologists, epidemiologists, geneticists, occupational medicine specialists and embryologists.