10 Things We Hate About Birth Defect Litigation

Why You Should Hire a Birth Defect Lawyer

If your child was born with an anomaly in the birth, it can have a devastating impact on you and your family. Medical bills, therapy costs and other losses can quickly become a burden.

A Hyattsville birth defect lawyer could assist you in filing claim for compensation for the expenses of taking care of your child with disabilities. A legal claim for birth defects may be complex, so you should consult a lawyer as soon as you can.

Medical Malpractice

Medical professionals must follow the highest standards of care when treating pregnant women and their infants. A doctor can be held accountable for damages if their actions result in birth defects or injuries. A DC lawyer who is experienced in birth defect lawsuits can help you determine whether your child's condition may be the result of an error in medical care during the pregnancy or delivery.

A doctor may also be held liable for birth defect lawsuit injuries if they fail to identify fetal distress, or are unable to respond in a timely manner. This can lead to many serious problems like hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy as well as brain injuries such as cerebral palsy.

Birth injuries differ from birth defect attorneys defects because they are caused by circumstances during pregnancy, delivery or labor. Injuries can include conditions like Erb's Palsy, which occurs when the nerves that power 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 of these conditions can lead to lifelong disability and require ongoing treatment, resulting in large medical bills. A Washington, DC birth defect lawyer will provide a no-cost initial consultation to analyze your case and determine the most appropriate course of action for you and your child.

Prescription Drugs

A birth defect attorney may help parents determine the root cause of the birth injury of a child. While many birth defects are the result of genetics and other factors that occur during the mother's pregnancy however, they can also be caused because of medications. A number of commonly used medications have a profound effect on fetuses especially during the first trimester of a pregnancy. These include anti-nausea medications and NSAIDs as well as chemotherapy medications such as certain antibiotics and many more. These medications have been linked with an increased risk of deformities in the limbs and heart defects, brain defects and craniosynostois.

The duty of a doctor is to consider these risks when prescribing medication for pregnant women. When doctors fail to meet the standards of care required, they could be held liable for medical negligence. Pharma companies can also be held accountable for not adequately informing mothers of the risks of their medication. 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 first trimester pregnancies.

A birth defect lawyer can assist families receive reimbursement for future and ongoing medical expenses resulting from the disability or injury as well as loss of earnings and quality of life. This could include hospital expenses, doctor's fees, pharmaceutical costs and other expenses as well as assistive devices and therapy.

Chemical Exposure

A birth defect lawyer can bring a lawsuit on behalf of the families of children suffering from congenital disabilities that result from the negligence of companies which expose pregnant women to chemicals or drugs that cause birth defects. These lawyers are specially trained to discover the root of the birth defect in order to sue companies that expose mothers to teratogens when they work or at their home.

Some of the chemical exposures that contribute 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 through making chemical changes that inhibit normal cell function, or can cause organs that are not properly formed. These chemicals are present in various settings, birth defect lawsuit including manufacturing of semiconductors, metal cleaning and paint production.

Other chemicals that may cause birth defects are hydrocarbons with aliphatic properties, like dichloroethane or trichloroethylene perchloroethylene. These chemicals have been proven to cause birth problems, including cardiac disorders, birth defect lawsuit in babies born to mothers exposed to them during the womb.

Parents have filed lawsuits against a variety of companies involved in the exposure of families of soldiers at Camp Lejeune to these harmful chemicals. Some of these birth defects 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 may be caused by a combination between medical negligence and environmental conditions. If a family suspects that the birth defects of a child could be due to medical negligence, prescription drug overdose, or exposure to harmful chemicals such as benzene, they should seek out an DC Birth defect Lawsuit injury lawyer to discuss their case.

If pregnant women inhale or absorb pollutants from the environment and then develop birth defects. These chemicals are called teratogens. Over 4 million chemicals are found in our food, air and water and some can be harmful when they come into contact with pregnant women.

Arsenic in drinking waters or cadmium found in coal that has been contaminated for instance, can cause birth defects and other health issues. Certain birth defects are also associated with industrial solvents like benzene (a metal degreaser), toluene (a solvent for plastics) and trichloroethylene. Glycol ethers, which are utilized in the production of silicon chips, semiconductors and video displays are recognized to increase a woman's chance of having birth defects.

LK's experienced attorneys for birth defects have filed numerous lawsuits in behalf of children who suffered from many birth defects as a result of accidental exposure to toxic chemicals or chemicals at work or at home. These lawsuits usually involve a sophisticated scientific analysis and expert witnesses, such as toxicologists as well as epidemiologists, geneticists occupational medicine specialists and embryologists.