How To Get More Benefits From Your Birth Defect Litigation
Why You Should Hire a Birth Defect Lawyer
If your child was born with an anomaly in the birth it could be devastating for you and your family. Therapy costs, medical bills and other losses can add up quickly.
A Hyattsville lawyer with a specialization in birth defects can help you file for compensation for the costs of caring for your children with disabilities. A legal claim for birth defects could be complex, so you should consult a lawyer as soon as possible.
Medical Malpractice
Medical professionals must follow an appropriate standard of care when treating pregnant women and their babies. A doctor can be held accountable for damages when their actions cause birth defects or injuries. A DC lawyer with experience in birth defect lawsuits will help you determine if your child's illness could be due to an error in medical care during pregnancy or the birth.
A doctor may also be the cause of an injury to the fetus if they fail to diagnose or respond adequately to distress in the fetus. This can lead to a range of serious issues, such as hypoxic ischemic disorder (HIE) and brain injuries like cerebral palsy.
The difference between birth defects and birth injury is that defects are a part of a person's genetic makeup and injuries are caused by something that happens during labor, pregnancy, or the birth. Injuries can result from conditions like Erb's Palsy which develops when the nerves which energize and control the arms of a newborn are stretched or torn during birth, and caput succedaneum, an increase in the size of the scalp. Both of them can result in permanent disability and require ongoing treatment, resulting in large medical expenses. A Washington, DC birth defect lawyer will provide a no-cost initial consultation to examine your situation and determine the best method of action for you and your child.
Prescription Drugs
A birth defect attorney may be able to help parents determine the reason behind an infant's birth injury. Many birth defects are caused by genes or other factors that occur during pregnancy. However, medications can also cause birth defects. A variety of common medications can have a significant effect on fetuses and babies, particularly during the first trimester of pregnancy. Anti-nausea medications, NSAIDs and chemotherapy medications are among the most frequently used. These drugs have been linked to an increased risk of limb defects and heart defects, brain defects and craniosynostois.
It is a doctor's professional duty to be aware of these risks when prescribing medications for pregnant women. If doctors do not meet the requirements of this standard of care, they may be liable for medical malpractice. Pharmaceutical companies could be held accountable for not adequately warning mothers about the risks associated with their drugs. For instance, 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 the first trimester of pregnancy.
A birth defect lawyer can assist family members receive compensation for current and future medical expenses that result from the injury or disability, as well as loss of earnings and the quality of life. This can include hospital costs physician's fees, pharmaceutical costs and other expenses as well as assistive devices and therapy.
Chemical Exposure
A birth defect lawyer could bring a lawsuit for families of children who have congenital disabilities as a result of the negligence of businesses that expose pregnant women to chemicals and medications that cause birth defects. These lawyers are specially trained to determine the reason for birth defects so they can bring a suit against companies that expose pregnant women to teratogens at work or in their home.
Metals, fungicides herbicides and pesticides are a few chemicals that can cause birth defects. These chemicals are known as teratogens because they affect the healthy development of the fetus through making chemical changes that inhibit normal cell function or cause organs that are malformed. These chemicals are found in a variety of settings including manufacturing of semiconductors, cleaning of metals and paint production.
birth defect attorneys largo that can cause birth defects are the aliphatic hydrocarbons like dichloroethane, trichloroethylene, or perchloroethylene. These chemicals have been proven to cause birth problems, including cardiac disorders, in babies born to mothers exposed to them while in 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 the birth defect lawyers have won substantial settlements on behalf families who had their children born with severe birth defects because of exposure to toxic chemicals at the base.
Environmental Exposure
Certain birth defects are caused by the combination of medical negligence and environmental factors or chemicals. If a family believes the birth defect of their child could result from medical negligence, prescription drug abuse or exposure to toxic chemicals, they should talk to a DC birth injury lawyer to discuss the matter.
Chemicals and other pollutants in the environment can cause birth defects of a serious nature when they are consumed or absorbed by pregnant women. Teratogens are the term used to describe these chemicals. More than 4 million chemicals exist in our air, food and water and some are harmful if they come into contact with pregnant women.
Arsenic from drinking water or cadmium in coal that has been contaminated for instance, could cause birth defects as well as other health problems. Industrial solvents, such as trichloroethylene, benzene, and toluene (a metal degreaser) are also linked to certain birth defects. Glycol-ethers, which are employed in the manufacturing of silicon chips, semiconductors and video displays are known to increase the chance of having birth defects too.
The experienced attorneys at LK's firm for birth defects have filed many lawsuits in the name of children who suffered from various birth defects as a result of accidental exposure to toxic chemicals or chemicals at their workplace or home. These lawsuits involve complicated scientific analyses and expert witnesses, such as toxicologists and epidemiologists.