A cleft lip is a tissue in the lip that never forms properly while a child is developing in the womb. A cleft lip is a large division between the upper lip and the nose. A cleft palate is a similar issue and refers to an opening between the roof of the mouth and the nasal cavity. If your child has suffered from this birth defect, you may want to speak with a birth defect attorney.
Where Cleft Lips and Palates Come From
Cleft lips and palates are considered multifactorial because they can arise from both environmental factors and genetic ones. If your child has a particular defective gene but is not exposed to certain environmental factors, they will not develop a cleft lip.
How Negligence Can Lead to a Cleft Lip
Many doctors prescribe medications that can pass the placental barrier and can cause birth defects such as cleft lip. For example, some medications used to treat morning sickness can cause cleft lip or palate in a child who is genetically predisposed to it.
Folic Acid and Cleft Lips
Another reason why your child might develop a cleft lip is that you did not take folic acid. Your doctor is responsible for informing you of every action you should take to reduce the risk of a cleft lip. If your child develops this condition because you were not warned, you may be entitled to compensation for any medical expenses resulting from it.
If your child is hurt due to the negligence of a healthcare practitioner, both you and your child are entitled to compensation. Oftentimes, this condition can be treated through surgery, and you have a right to have the surgery paid for by the negligent doctor.
To receive compensation for the cleft lip, your birth defect attorney will need to investigate what happened to determine if the cleft lip is a result of negligence. The attorney will consult with an expert witness who will explain what a reasonable doctor would have done in your situation and how the failure to take the appropriate action lead to the cleft lip.
Compensation for Your Injuries
You are entitled to compensation for medical expenses, future medical expenses, pain, suffering, and a host of other damages you may have suffered as a result of your child's birth defect. Therefore, you will want to work with a birth defect attorney to calculate all of your damages.
To learn more, contact a birth defect attorney.
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