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. The cost of therapy, medical bills and other losses can quickly become a burden.

A Hyattsville birth defect lawyer can help you file an appeal to receive reimbursement for the costs of taking care of your child with disabilities. A legal claim for birth defects may be complex, so you should seek legal advice as soon as you can.

Medical Malpractice

Medical professionals must follow the highest standards of care when treating pregnant women and their babies. A doctor could be held responsible for damages if their actions result in birth defects or injuries. A DC lawyer who has experience in birth defect lawsuits can help you determine if your child's condition could have been caused by an error in medical care during pregnancy or the birth.

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

The distinction between a birth defect and a birth injury is that defects are a part of a person's genetic makeup, while injuries are caused by something occurring during labor, pregnancy or during delivery. The causes of injuries include conditions like Erb's Palsy that occurs when the nerves that stimulate and control the arms of an infant are stretched or torn during the birth process, and caput succedaneum, a swelling of the scalp. Both of these could cause permanent disability and require ongoing treatment, which can result in hefty medical costs. A Washington, DC lawyer who specializes in birth defects can offer a free consultation in order to examine your case and decide on the best course for you and your baby.

Prescription Drugs

A birth defect lawyer may be able to help parents determine the root of a child's birth defect. While many birth defects are caused by genetics and the factors that influence the mother's pregnancy but they can also happen because of medications. A number of commonly used medications have a significant impact on fetuses, particularly in the first trimester of pregnancy. Anti-nausea medication, NSAIDs and chemotherapy drugs are among the most commonly used. These drugs have been linked to an increased chance of limb deformities, heart defects, brain defects and craniosynostois.

It is the duty of a doctor to be aware of the potential risks when prescribing medications for pregnant women. If doctors do not meet the standards of care required, they could be held accountable for medical negligence. Pharmaceutical companies can be held accountable for not adequately informing mothers of the risks associated with their medicines. For example, Zofran, a medication used to treat nausea in cancer patients, has been proven to significantly increase the risk of congenital defects that are major in the first trimester of a pregnancy.

A birth defect lawyer can help families receive compensation for the future and present medical expenses associated with the disability or injury, in addition to loss of earnings and quality of life. This could include hospital, birth defect doctor's, pharmaceutical, and other costs, in addition to assistive devices and therapies.

Chemical Exposure

A birth defect lawyer can sue families of children who suffer from congenital disabilities because due to the negligence of corporations who expose pregnant women to chemicals and drugs that cause birth defects. These lawyers are specially trained to identify the cause of the birth defect to bring a lawsuit against companies who expose mothers to teratogens while they are at work or in their homes.

Metals, fungicides herbicides and pesticides are just a few of the chemicals that can cause birth defects. These chemicals are called Teratogens as they interfere with the development of the fetus through making chemical changes that inhibit normal cell function or create organs that are malformed. These chemicals are found in a variety of settings, including metal cleaning and semiconductor manufacturing.

Other hazardous chemicals that could cause birth defects include aliphatic cyaninated hydrocarbons such as trichloroethylene, perchloroethylene and dichloroethane. These chemicals are known to cause birth defects in the heart in babies born to mothers who were exposed while they were in the womb.

Parents have filed lawsuits to ensure that companies are held accountable for the families of soldiers who live at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina exposed to harmful chemicals. Some of these birth defect lawyers have secured substantial settlements on behalf families whose children were born with severe defects as a result of the toxic chemical exposures at the base.

Environmental Exposure

Certain birth defects are caused by a combination of medical negligence as well as environmental conditions or chemicals. If a family believes that the birth defect in their child could be a result of medical negligence, prescription drug abuse or exposure to toxic chemicals, they should talk to a DC birth injury lawyer to discuss the issue.

If pregnant women ingest or absorb contaminants from their environment, they can cause serious birth defects. Teratogens are the name for these chemicals. More than 4 million chemicals can be found in our air, food and water. Certain of these chemicals may be dangerous to pregnant women.

Arsenic in drinking waters or cadmium in contaminated coal for instance, can cause birth defects as well as other health problems. Certain birth defects are caused by industrial solvents such as benzene (a metal degreaser) and toluene (a solvent for plastics) and trichloroethylene. Glycol-ethers are also known for their ability to increase the risk of birth defects among women. These chemicals are used for the manufacture of semiconductors display panels, silicon chip displays, and video displays.

The experienced lawyers at LK for birth defects have filed many lawsuits on the name of children who suffered from many birth defects due to the wrongful exposure to chemicals or toxic substances at their workplace or home. These lawsuits often involve complicated scientific analysis and experts as witnesses, like toxicologists and epidemiologists, geneticists, occupational medicine experts and embryologists.