Why You Should Hire a birth defect lawsuit Defect Lawyer

If your child was born with a birth defect it can have a devastating effect on your family and you. The cost of therapy, medical bills and other expenses can add up quickly.

A Hyattsville lawyer that specializes in birth defects may be able to help you file for compensation for the cost of caring for your child with disabilities. Legal claims for birth defects are complicated, so it is important to seek legal advice whenever you can.

Medical Malpractice

Medical professionals are required to follow a standard when treating pregnant women or their infants. A doctor can be held accountable for damages when their actions cause birth defects or injuries. A DC lawyer who is experienced in lawsuits involving birth defects can assist you in determining whether your child's condition may be due to an error made by the medical professional during pregnancy or during delivery.

A doctor could also be held responsible for birth injuries if they fail to detect fetal distress or do not respond appropriately. This could lead to a variety of serious issues, including hypoxic ischemic disorder (HIE) and cerebral palsy.

The difference between birth defects and birth injury is that defects are a part of a person's genetic makeup, while injuries are caused by something occurring during pregnancy, labor, or birth. These injuries can be caused by conditions like Erb's Palsy which is caused when the nerves that energize and control the arms of an infant are stretched or ruptured during birth and caput succedaneum, a swelling of the scalp. Both of these conditions can result in permanent disability and require ongoing treatment, resulting in hefty medical costs. A Washington, DC birth defect lawyer can offer a no-cost initial consultation to analyze your situation and determine the best method of action for you and your child.

Prescription Drugs

A birth defect lawyer could be able to help parents determine the cause of a child's birth injury or defect. Many birth defects result from genes or other factors that occur during pregnancy. However, medications can also cause birth defects. A variety of common medications can have negative effects on the fetuses. This is especially relevant in the first three months of pregnancy. Anti-nausea medications, NSAIDs and chemotherapy medications are among the most popular. These drugs have been shown to increase the risk of limb and heart defects, brain deformities, and craniosynostois.

A doctor's duty is to take into consideration the risks when prescribing medications for women who are pregnant. When doctors fail to meet the requirements of this standard of care, they could be held liable for medical malpractice. Pharmaceutical companies can be held liable as well for not properly warning mothers about the risks associated with their medications. For example, Zofran, a medication used to treat nausea in cancer patients, has been found to significantly increase the risk of serious congenital defects during the first trimester of pregnancies.

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

Chemical Exposure

A birth defect lawyer may bring a lawsuit on behalf of families of children with congenital disabilities that result from the negligence of businesses which expose pregnant women to chemicals or drugs that cause birth defects. They are trained to identify the cause of the birth defect in order to sue companies that expose mothers to teratogens as they are at work or in their homes.

Some of the chemical exposures that can lead to birth defects are metals, fungicides, herbicides and other pesticides. These chemicals are known as Teratogens as they interfere with the growth of the fetus producing chemical changes that block normal cell function, or can cause organs to be malformed. These chemicals are found in various settings, including manufacturing of semiconductors, cleaning of metals and paint production.

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

Parents have filed lawsuits against various companies involved in exposing the families of soldiers at Camp Lejeune to these harmful chemicals. Some of the birth defect lawyers have obtained substantial settlements on behalf of families whose children were born with severe defects as a result of exposure to toxic chemicals at the base.

Environmental Exposure

Some birth defects can be caused by a combination of medical negligence and environmental factors. If a family suspects the birth defects of a baby could be the result of medical negligence or prescription drug overdose or exposure to harmful chemicals, they should consult an DC birth injury lawyer to discuss their case.

If pregnant women consume or absorb contaminants from the surrounding environment and then develop birth defects. These substances are known as Teratogens. Over 4 million chemicals are present in our food, air and water, and some of them can be harmful if they come into contact with a woman who is pregnant.

For example, arsenic in drinking water and cadmium in coal that is contaminated may cause a variety of birth defects, as well as other health problems. Certain birth defect lawsuit defects can also be related to industrial solvents, such as benzene (a metal degreaser) and toluene (a solvent for plastics) and trichloroethylene. Glycol-ethers can 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.

LK's highly experienced birth defect lawyers have brought many lawsuits on behalf of children suffering from a myriad of birth defects caused by the wrongful exposure to chemicals and toxic substances at work or at home. These lawsuits typically involve sophisticated scientific analysis and expert witnesses, including toxicologists, epidemiologists, geneticists, embryologists and lawyers occupational medicine experts.