Guide To Birth Defect Litigation: The Intermediate Guide For Birth Defect Litigation

Why You Should Hire a Birth Defect Lawyer

If your child was born with a birth defect it could have a devastating effect on you and your family. Therapy costs, medical bills and other expenses can quickly mount up.

A Hyattsville birth defect lawyer can assist you in filing an action to collect compensation for the expenses of taking care of your disabled child. Legal claims for birth defects are complicated and therefore it is vital to seek legal advice as soon as you can.

Medical Malpractice

Medical professionals are required to follow a standard when treating pregnant women or their infants. A doctor can be held responsible for damages when their actions cause birth defects or injuries. A DC lawyer with experience in lawsuits for birth defects will help you determine if your child's illness could be the result of a medical error during the pregnancy or delivery.

A doctor could also be held responsible for birth injuries if they fail recognize fetal distress and do not respond appropriately. This can lead to a range of serious issues, such as hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) and brain injuries such as cerebral palsy.

The distinction between birth defects and birth injury is that defects are part of a person's genetic make-up and injuries are triggered by something occurring during labor, pregnancy or birth. These injuries can be caused by conditions such as Erb's palsy which develops when the nerves that stimulate and control the arms of an infant are stretched or damaged during birth, and caput succedaneum, an increase in the size of the scalp. Both can result in lifelong disability, and ongoing treatment will cost a great deal of money. A Washington, DC lawyer who is skilled in birth defects can offer a free consultation in order to look over your case and determine the most appropriate course for you and your baby.

Prescription Drugs

A birth defect attorney may be able help parents determine the cause for a child's birth defect. While many birth defects are the result of the genetics of the pregnancy of a mother however, they may also occur due to medications. Many common medications have a significant impact on fetuses especially during the first trimester of pregnancy. Anti-nausea medication, NSAIDs and chemotherapy medications are among the most commonly used. These drugs have been linked to an increase in risk of limb defects and heart defects, brain deformities and craniosynostosis.

The duty of a doctor is to take into consideration these risks when prescribing medication for women who are pregnant. If doctors fail to follow this standard of care, then they could be held accountable for negligence. Pharma companies may also be held responsible for not properly informing 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 congenital defects that are major in first trimester pregnancies.

A birth defect attorney can assist a family to obtain compensation for medical expenses, loss of income and the quality of life. This can include hospital costs medical expenses, doctor's fees and pharmaceutical costs and other expenses in addition to assistive devices, and therapy.

Chemical Exposure

A birth defect lawyer could bring a lawsuit for parents of children with congenital disabilities because from the negligence of companies who expose pregnant women to chemicals and drugs that can cause birth deformities. These lawyers are specially trained to find out the cause of the birth defect so that they can file a lawsuit against companies which expose mothers to teratogens during the time they are working or in their homes.

Some of the exposures to chemicals that lead to birth defects are herbicides, fungicides, metals and other pesticides. These chemicals are known as teratogens because they affect the healthy development of the fetus producing chemical changes that block normal cell function or create organs that are not properly formed. These chemicals can be found in diverse settings like the manufacturing of semiconductors, metal cleaning and paint production.

Other hazardous chemicals that could cause birth defects are aliphatic hydrocarbons with aliphatic chlorinated chemistry such as perchloroethylene, trichloroethylene or 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 make companies accountable for the families of soldiers in Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, to harmful chemicals. Some of these birth defect lawyers have secured significant settlements for families whose children were born with severe defects resulting from the exposure to toxic chemicals on the base.

Environmental Exposure

Some birth defects are caused by a combination between medical negligence and environmental conditions. If a family believes the birth defect of their child could result from medical negligence, prescription drug abuse or exposure to harmful chemicals, they should speak with a DC birth injury lawyer to discuss the issue.

If pregnant women inhale or absorb pollutants from the environment they could develop serious birth defects. Teratogens are the term used to describe these chemicals. Over 4 million chemicals are present in our food, air and water Some of them are harmful if they come into contact with a woman who is pregnant.

For instance, arsenic found in drinking water as well as cadmium derived from coal that is contaminated may cause a variety of birth defects, as well as other health issues. Industrial solvents, such as benzene, toluene and trichloroethylene (a metal degreaser) are also linked to certain birth defects. Glycol ethers, which are used in the production of silicon chips, semiconductors and video displays are known to increase the chances of having birth defects as well.

The experienced attorneys at LK's firm for birth defects have filed a variety of lawsuits on behalf of children suffering 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, such as toxicologists or epidemiologists, geneticists embryologists and occupational medicine experts.