Say "Yes" To These 5 Birth Defect Case Tips

Why You Should Hire a Birth Defect Attorney

The joy of parenting can turn into a harrowing event when you learn that your child was born with an anomaly in the birth. Most birth defects require lifelong medical care, which can lead to staggering financial costs.

A New York birth defects attorney can determine if your child's condition is due to medical malpractice or harmful chemicals or pharmaceuticals.

Causes of Birth Defects

If your child suffers an issue with their birth that could have been avoided by an expert medical professional, you should consult a Long Island birth defects attorney as soon as possible. An experienced attorney can take care of the previous step swiftly and efficiently, so that you can grieve for your injured loved one.

Birth defects are structural or functional changes in the body of a fetus that can impact almost every part of the human body. They can cause physical ailments or intellectual and developmental disabilities including difficulty communicating or learning, or having difficulty with walking or taking care of oneself.

Some birth defects can be diagnosed before the baby is born using special tests, such as studying the blood cells in a sample or examining samples from amniotic fluid or the placenta. Doctors are increasingly able to diagnose birth defects through fetal ultrasound and magnetic resonance imaging.

Some birth defects can be caused by genetic causes, such as the chromosomes of a fetus's and genes. These abnormalities may be inherited from parents or they can result from new mutations in the fetus's DNA which occurred during the gestation process. A few of the more common genetic birth defects include spina bifida, trisomy 21 and Tay-Sachs disease. Many other genetic birth defects have no cause known in any way.

Medical Malpractice

You may be able to pursue a claim against an individual doctor for medical negligence when you or your child were injured as a result of a mistake made by the health care provider. This could include the failure to diagnose or treat, for example, a doctor not taking your symptoms seriously or making a wrong diagnosis and not initiating the correct treatment or failing to follow-up on test results or medication errors (e.g. anesthesia mistakes such as prescribing excessive or the wrong kind of medication) and surgical errors (e.g. or a surgeon removing a surgical retractor blade inside the patient during surgery).

Finding a lawyer who has expertise in malpractice cases could be a difficult task. However you can seek recommendations from family members and acquaintances and also attorneys in other areas. Additionally, you can contact your state bar association. Most bar associations have search/referral tools that can help you locate an experienced medical malpractice lawyer.

Chemical Exposure

Birth defects may be caused by harmful chemicals that are harmful to the fetus or mother. Many of these chemicals are found at work, where they are used in the making of various products, including paints ceramic glazes, batteries and plastics. These chemicals are ingested or inhaled, or absorbed through the skin. Some of these chemicals are known to increase the risk for the child to develop birth defects, such as spina-bifida or other mental and physical ailments.

These teratogen chemical agents can be contained in medications negligently prescribed by doctors, in chemical substances used in the workplace like those found in semiconductor "clean room" environments or in toxic substances that contaminate the air and water in communities. The Thornton Law Firm has represented many parents whose children have been born with serious birth defects after the mothers were exposed to glycol ethers as well as pesticides and coal ash at their place of employment.

Contact an experienced New York birth injury lawyer for a free consultation today if you believe that your child's birth defects were caused due to medical negligence, a toxic substance or a dangerous drug during pregnancy. These claims have a strict statute of limitations and are time-sensitive. An experienced attorney can determine if the child is able to file an claim, and if it should be filed in court or a settlement agreement.

Product Liability

Many birth defects can be the result of a wrong prescription or exposure to chemicals. It is crucial for parents to consult an attorney for birth defects immediately if they believe that their child's condition was caused by medical negligence or the use of dangerous drugs. These cases can be extremely difficult and extremely time-sensitive.

Medical malpractice claims are often based on the environmental factors that lead to birth defects, such as incorrectly prescribed medications or drugs or inadequate medical care during pregnancy. Families should seek legal advice as soon as they can, as the statute of limitations for a medical malpractice claim is only one year.

Birth defect lawsuits for medication can also be filed in cases where the doctor was negligent when prescribing medications to the mother, for example not knowing the way a particular medication would interact with other medications the mother may be taking, or by not adequately informing her of the adverse effects. A Maryland lawyer for birth defects in medication can assist clients in recovering damages when a doctor acts negligently and causes a birth injury or birth defect.

A family that has a newborn with a serious birth defect could face huge expenses, such as the cost of surgery, therapy and ongoing treatment for the rest of the child's life. A birth defect lawyer who is knowledgeable and experienced can help parents determine if the medical condition of the child was caused by medical negligence, a hazardous drug, or toxic exposure.