From Around The Web Twenty Amazing Infographics About Birth Defect Litigation

Why You Should Hire a Birth Defect Lawyer

If your child was born with a birth deformity, it can cause a lot of grief for your family and you. The cost of therapy, medical bills and other losses can quickly add up.

A Hyattsville lawyer that specializes in birth defects may be able to help you seek compensation for the costs of caring for your child with disabilities. Legal claims for birth defects can be a little tangled, so it is important to seek legal advice whenever you can.

Medical Malpractice

Medical professionals must adhere to an appropriate standard of care when treating pregnant women and their babies. A doctor could be held accountable for damages when their actions cause birth defects or injuries. A DC lawyer who has expertise in lawsuits involving birth defects can help determine the cause of your child's illness. caused by a medical error during pregnancy or delivery.

A doctor could also be responsible for an injury to the fetus if they fail to identify or properly respond to distress in the fetus. This can cause various serious problems, including hypoxic-ischemic neuropathy and brain injuries such as cerebral palsy.

The difference between birth defects and birth injury is that defects are a part of a person's genetic make-up, while injuries are caused by something that happens during labor, pregnancy or the birth. The most common injuries are Erb's Palsy, where the nerves controlling the infant's limbs and arms are stretched or torn. Another injury is the caput succedaneum, an inflammation of the scalp. Both of them can cause permanent disability and ongoing treatment will cost a great deal of money. A Washington, DC lawyer who is skilled in birth defects can provide a free consultation to review your case, and determine the most appropriate course for you and your baby.

Prescription Drugs

A birth defect lawyer might be able help parents determine the root cause of a child's birth defect. Many birth defects are caused by genetics or factors during pregnancy. However, certain medications can also cause birth defects. Many commonly used medications can have negative effects on the fetuses. This is especially relevant in the first three months of pregnancy. They include anti-nausea medicines, NSAIDs, chemotherapy drugs, certain antibiotics, and more. These drugs have been proven to increase the risk of developing limb and heart defects, brain deformities and craniosynostois.

It is the professional responsibility of doctors to consider the risks when prescribing medication for women who are pregnant. When doctors fail to meet this standard of care they may be liable for medical negligence. Pharmaceutical companies could be held liable as well for failing to adequately warn mothers of the risks associated with their drugs. Zofran, which is used to treat nausea in cancer patients, was shown to increase the risk of major defects occurring in first-trimester pregnancies.

A birth defect lawyer can help family members receive compensation for the future and present medical expenses related to the injury or disability, in addition to loss of earnings and the quality of life. This can include hospital costs as well as doctor's fees, pharmaceutical costs, and other expenses, as well as assistive devices and therapy.

Chemical Exposure

A birth defect lawyer may bring a lawsuit on behalf of families of children who suffer from congenital disabilities resulting from the negligence of businesses who expose pregnant women chemicals or drugs that cause birth defects. They are trained to determine what caused the birth defect, so they can sue companies which expose mothers to teratogens as they are at work or in their homes.

Some of the exposures to chemicals that lead to birth defects include herbicides, fungicides, metals and other pesticides. These chemicals are known as teratogens due to the fact that they affect the healthy development a foetus by causing chemical changes that can cause abnormal organs or hinder normal cell function. These chemicals can be found in a variety of settings including the manufacturing of semiconductors, metal cleaning and paint production.

Other hazardous chemicals that could cause birth defects are aliphatic chlorinated hydrocarbons such as trichloroethylene, perchloroethylene and dichloroethane. These chemicals have been proven to cause birth defects in the heart in babies born to mothers exposed in the womb.

Parents have filed lawsuits to expose companies to liability for the families of soldiers at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina exposed to harmful chemicals. Some of these birth defect lawyers have obtained significant settlements on behalf of families whose children were born with serious defects as a result of exposure to toxic chemicals at the base.

Environmental Exposure

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

If pregnant women inhale or absorb pollutants from the environment they could develop serious birth defects. Teratogens are the names given to these substances. Over 4 million chemicals are found in our air, food and water, and some of them can be harmful if they come into contact with a woman who is pregnant.

Arsenic in drinking water or cadmium in coal that has been contaminated, for example, can cause birth defects and other health issues. Industrial solvents such as benzene, toluene and trichloroethylene (a metal degreaser) are also linked with certain birth defects. Glycol-ethers also increase the chance of birth defects in women. These chemicals are used in the production of semiconductors display panels, silicon chip displays, and video displays.

LK's experienced birth defect attorneys have filed numerous lawsuits on behalf of children who suffer from a range of birth defects due to improper exposure to chemicals and toxic substances at workplaces or in their homes. These lawsuits are based on complex scientific analyses and expert witnesses such as toxicologists and epidemiologists.