10 Things We Do Not Like About Birth Defect Litigation

Why You Should Hire a Birth Defect Lawyer

If your child was born with an anomaly in the birth this can cause a huge impact on you and your family. Medical bills, therapy costs and other losses can quickly increase.

A Hyattsville lawyer that specializes in birth defects could assist to file a claim for compensation for the costs of caring for your child with disabilities. Legal claims for birth defects are complicated and therefore it is crucial to seek legal advice immediately.

Medical Malpractice

Medical professionals must follow a standard of care when treating pregnant women and their infants. If a doctor's actions are in violation of this standard and cause birth defect or injury, they can be held accountable for the injuries suffered by their patient. A DC lawyer who has expertise in lawsuits for birth defects will help you determine the cause of your child's illness. caused by a medical mistake during pregnancy or delivery.

A doctor can be held accountable for birth injuries if they fail to recognize fetal distress and don't respond appropriately. This could lead to a number serious problems including hypoxic-ischemic neuropathy and brain injuries such as cerebral palsy.

Birth injuries differ from birth defect lawsuit defects in the sense that they are caused by circumstances during pregnancy, delivery, or labor. Injuries can be caused by Erb's palsy which occurs when the nerves that control the infant's arms and limbs are stretched or torn. Another type of injury is caput succedaneum which is a swelling on the scalp. Both of them can result in permanent disability and require ongoing treatment, resulting in large medical expenses. A Washington, DC lawyer who specializes in birth defects can provide a no-cost consultation to review your case, and determine the best course for you and your baby.

Prescription Drugs

A birth defect lawyer may be able to help parents identify 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. Many commonly used medications can have a negative impact on foetuses. This is especially evident in the initial three months of pregnancy. Anti-nausea medications, NSAIDs and chemotherapy medications are among the most commonly used. These medications have been linked with an increased risk of deformities in the limbs and heart defects, brain deformities and craniosynostois.

It is a doctor's professional duty to consider the potential risks when prescribing medications for pregnant women. If doctors do not follow this standard of care, they may be held liable for negligence. Pharmaceutical companies could be held accountable for not properly warning mothers of the dangers 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 major congenital defects in the first trimester of a pregnancy.

A birth defect attorney can help a family get compensation for medical expenses, income loss and quality of life. This can include hospital costs medical expenses, doctor's fees and pharmaceutical costs and other costs, as well as assistive devices and therapy.

Chemical Exposure

A birth defect lawyer may sue families of children with congenital disabilities as a result of the negligence of companies who expose pregnant women to chemicals and medications that cause birth deformities. They are trained to determine the reason for the birth defects so that they can bring a suit against companies that expose pregnant women to teratogens either at work or in their home.

Some of the chemical exposures that contribute to birth defects are herbicides, fungicides, metals and other pesticides. These chemicals are referred to as Teratogens because they affect the healthy development a embryo through chemical changes that cause abnormal organs, or disrupt normal cell function. These chemicals are present in many different settings, including manufacturing of semiconductors, cleaning of metals and paint production.

Other hazardous chemicals that could cause birth defects are aliphatic hydrocarbons with aliphatic chlorinated chemistry such as perchloroethylene, trichloroethylene and dichloroethane. These chemicals have been found to cause birth defects, including cardiac defects, in babies born to mothers who were exposed to them during the womb.

Parents have filed lawsuits against several firms that were responsible for exposing the families of soldiers at Camp Lejeune to these harmful chemicals. Some of these birth defect lawyers have secured significant settlements for families that had children born with severe defects due to the exposure to toxic chemicals on the base.

Environmental Exposure

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

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

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

LK's experienced birth defect attorneys have brought many lawsuits on behalf of children who suffered from a wide range of birth defects caused by unintentional exposure to toxic chemicals and chemicals at work or at home. These lawsuits typically involve complex scientific analysis and experts as witnesses, like toxicologists or epidemiologists, geneticists embryologists and occupational medicine experts.