Why You Should Hire a Birth Defect Attorney

Finding out that your child has a birth defect can make the joy of parenting into a frightening experience. The majority of birth defects require medical care, which can result in staggering financial costs.

A New York birth defects attorney can determine if your child's condition is due to medical malpractice or harmful chemicals or medications.

Causes of Birth Defects

If your child has an issue with their birth which could have been prevented by a medical professional, you should speak with a Long Island birth defects attorney as soon as possible. A reputable lawyer can handle the preceding steps quickly and efficiently, ensuring that you can grieve for the loss of your family member.

Birth defects are functional or structural changes in a fetus's body that can affect almost every body part. They can lead to physical problems or developmental and intellectual disabilities like difficulty in communicating or learning or in activities such as walking or taking care of oneself.

Some birth defects can be diagnosed before the baby is born by specific tests, such as analysing cells in a blood sample or by examining samples of amniotic fluid or the placenta. Doctors can detect birth defects with ultrasound or magnetic resonance imaging.

Certain birth defects are caused by genetic factors, for example abnormalities in the chromosomes and genes. These defects can be passed down by the parents or triggered through mutations that occur in the DNA of the fetus at conception. Some of the most common birth defects that are genetic in nature include trisomy 21, spina bifida and Tay Sachs disease. Many other birth defect lawsuit defects that are genetic have no known cause in any way.

Medical Malpractice

If you or your child sustained a medical injury due to a mistake by a doctor or another health care professional, you may have a claim for medical malpractice. This could include the failure to diagnose or treat, such as the doctor not taking your symptoms seriously or making a false diagnosis and not beginning the correct treatment or failing to follow-up on the results of tests, medication errors (e.g. anesthesia errors such as prescribing excessive or the wrong type of medication) and surgical errors (e.g. the surgeon leaving a surgical retractor blade inside the patient during surgery).

Finding a lawyer with expertise in malpractice cases can be a difficult task. You can ask family members, friends, and attorneys in other areas for recommendations. Additionally, you can contact your state bar association. Many bar associations offer search and referral tools to help you locate an experienced medical malpractice lawyer.

Chemical Exposure

Sometimes, birth defects can be caused by exposure to dangerous chemicals that affect the mother or foetus. Many of these chemicals are present in the workplace where they are used to make products like plastics, batteries, paint and ceramic glazes. These chemicals can be consumed or inhaled, or absorbed by the skin of the body. Certain of these chemicals are known to increase the chance of the child to develop a birth defect such as spina-bifida, as well as other physical and psychological conditions.

These teratogens are found in medications that doctors have negligently prescribed, in the use of chemicals at work such as those in semiconductor "clean rooms" or in toxic substances which contaminate air and water. The Thornton Law Firm represents many parents whose children were born with a severe birth defects due to the fact that their mothers were exposed to pesticides, coal ash and glycol ethers at work.

If you believe that your child's birth defect resulted from medical negligence, a risky medication or toxic exposure during pregnancy, birth defect call an experienced New York birth injury attorney to arrange a free consultation on case strategy today. These claims are time sensitive and there are strict time limitations. An experienced lawyer can help you determine whether your child is eligible to file a claim and if it is best to file it through a court proceeding or a settlement agreement.

Product Liability

Many birth defects could be caused by an incorrect prescription or exposure to chemicals. If parents suspect that the condition of their child is due to negligence on the part of a doctor or dangerous drugs they should consult an attorney who deals with birth defects immediately. These cases can be extremely complicated and time-sensitive.

Medical malpractice cases usually involve the causes of a birth defect due to environmental factors like exposure to environmental chemicals prescriptions that are not properly followed or drugs or inadequate prenatal care. Families should seek legal advice immediately as the statute of limitations on medical malpractice claims is only one year.

A lawsuit based on a birth defect resulting from medication could also be filed if the doctor was negligent in prescribing medication to a mother. For instance the doctor failed to understand the interactions of a drug with other medications that the woman may be taking or did not properly inform her of its possible side effects. A Maryland attorney for birth defect medical birth defects can help clients recover damages when a physician is negligent and causes birth injuries or birth defect.

A family who has a newborn with a serious birth defect could face huge expenses, which include surgery, therapy and ongoing treatment throughout the child's life. A birth defect lawyer who is knowledgeable and experienced can help parents determine whether the medical condition of the child was caused by medical negligence, a hazardous drug, or toxic exposure.