Why Nobody Cares About Birth Defect Litigation

Why You Should Hire a Birth Defect Lawyer

If your child was born with a birth defect, it can cause a huge impact on you and your family. Medical bills, therapy expenses and other losses can add up quickly.

A Hyattsville lawyer who specializes in birth defects can help you file for reimbursement for the expenses of taking care of your disabled children. A legal claim for birth defects may be complicated, so you should consult with a legal professional as soon as possible.

Medical Malpractice

Medical professionals must follow an appropriate standard of care when treating pregnant women and their infants. When a doctor's actions are in violation of this standard and cause birth defects or injuries, they can be held accountable for injuries suffered by their patient. A DC lawyer who has experience in birth defect lawsuits can help determine whether your child's health issue was caused by a medical error during pregnancy or delivery.

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

The distinction between a birth defect and a birth injury is that defects are part of a person's genetic make-up however, injuries are caused by something occurring during pregnancy, labor, or during delivery. Injury can include Erb's Palsy which occurs when the nerves that control the infant's arms and legs are stretched or torn. Another type of injury is called caput succedaneum. It's swelling of the scalp. Both of these can result in permanent disability and require ongoing treatment, resulting in large medical expenses. A Washington, DC birth defect lawyer can offer a no-cost initial consultation to analyze your situation and determine the best option for you and your child.

Prescription Drugs

A birth defect lawyer might be able to help parents identify the cause of the birth injury or defect. Many birth defects are caused by genes or other factors that occur during pregnancy. However, certain medications can also cause birth defects. A number of commonly used medications can have negative effects on foetuses. This is especially applicable in the early months of pregnancy. This includes anti-nausea medication and NSAIDs as well as chemotherapy medications as well as certain antibiotics, and many more. These drugs have been proven to increase the risk of limb and heart defects, brain deformities, and craniosynostois.

A doctor's job is to take into consideration these risks when prescribing medication for women who are pregnant. If doctors do not adhere to this standard of care, then they could be held accountable for negligence. Pharma companies could also be held accountable for not adequately informing mothers of the risks associated with their medications. For instance, 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 assist families receive compensation for future and current medical expenses that result from the disability or injury, and also loss of earnings and quality of life. This could include hospital, doctor's, pharmaceutical, and other costs, as well as aidive devices and treatments.

Chemical Exposure

A birth defect attorney defect lawyer may bring an action on behalf of families of children with congenital disabilities resulting from the negligence of businesses that expose pregnant women to chemicals or drugs that cause birth defects. They are trained to identify the cause of birth defects so that they can bring a lawsuit against companies that expose pregnant women to teratogens at work or at home.

Some of the chemical exposures that lead to birth defects include the fungicides, metals, herbicides and other pesticides. These chemicals are known as Teratogens as they interfere with the healthy development of the fetus by creating chemical changes that hinder normal cell function or create malformed organs. These chemicals are present in diverse settings like manufacturing of semiconductors, cleaning of metals and paint production.

Other hazardous chemicals that could cause birth defects include aliphatic cyaninated hydrocarbons such as perchloroethylene (trichloroethylene), trichloroethylene ( dichloroethane. These chemicals have been proven to cause cardiac birth defects in babies born to mothers exposed during their time in the womb.

Parents have filed lawsuits against a variety of firms that were responsible for exposing the families of soldiers at Camp Lejeune to these harmful chemicals. Some of these birth defect lawyers have obtained substantial settlements on behalf of families whose children were born with severe birth defects because of the toxic chemical exposures at the base.

Environmental Exposure

Certain birth defects can be caused by the combination of medical negligence as well as environmental conditions or chemicals. If a family believes their child's birth defect may be the result of medical malpractice, prescription drug overdose or exposure to toxic chemicals, they should speak with an DC birth injury lawyer to discuss the issue.

If pregnant women ingest or absorb contaminants from the environment and birth defect lawyers then develop birth defects. These chemicals are referred to as Teratogens. Over 4 million chemicals exist in our food, air and water and some are harmful if they come into contact with a woman who is pregnant.

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

LK's highly experienced birth defect lawyers have brought many lawsuits on behalf of children who suffered from a range of birth defects resulting from unintentional exposure to toxic chemicals and chemicals at work or in their homes. These lawsuits typically require complex scientific analysis and expert witnesses, such as toxicologists as well as epidemiologists, geneticists embryologists and occupational medicine experts.