Birth Defect Lawyer

Baltimore, Maryland Birth Injury Attorney

Spina Bifida: Possible Birth Defect Causes

If you have a child with spina bifida, especially if this birth defect has resulted in some form of disability, you are probably worried about the challenges your child will face in the years ahead. You have probably also heard that spina bifida is often caused by a deficiency in B vitamins, and you may even be worrying that something about your diet could have caused this challenging condition in your child. The Yost Legal Group is a firm of compassionate lawyers who understand the challenges that parents of children with birth injuries often face.

If you are wondering how this life-changing event happened to your family, you may be interested to know that the risk of spina bifida along with other birth injuries are also linked to exposure to certain chemicals. It is possible that environmental contamination or a type of medication may be the real reason behind your child’s condition. Our Baltimore birth defect lawyers specialize in representing families of children with birth defects like spina bifida caused by environmental factors that resulted from someone else’s negligence.

Glycol Ethers and Other Chemicals Linked to Spina Bifida

If you have a child with spina bifida, it is important that you not fall into the trap of blaming yourself for your child’s condition. Instead, you may want to consider the possibility that your child was inadvertently exposed to a chemical or medication that increased the risk of birth defects like spina bifida. There are actually a variety of substances linked to spina bifida, such as glycol ethers. Glycol ethers are used in semiconductor “clean rooms” and are known to cause a range of birth defects including:

• Missing or deformed limbs
• Blindness
• Deafness
• Cleft palate
• Craniofacial deformity
• Brain injury
• Digestive tract defects
• Heart defects
• Spina bifida

Spina bifida has also been linked to the anti-seizure drugs valproic acid (Depekene) and carbamazepine (Carbatrol/Tegretol) as well as cancer and Crohn’s disease drugs methotrexate (MTX) and aminopterin, which are also used to treat a long list of autoimmune conditions.

In October, 2010, a study by a group of public health researchers in Texas found that mothers exposed to benzene in the first month of pregnancy are more likely to deliver babies with spina bifida. Benzene exposure is an air pollutant that can pass from mother to fetus when inhaled.

Finding Out if Your Child Was Exposed

If glycol ethers or benzene are used in your workplace, you are more likely to be exposed to these birth defect-causing chemicals. If you are unsure, your employer should be ready to list all the chemicals used in your workplace and is legally required to show you any Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS) you request. You can ask your doctor about the medications you were taking around the time of conception. Information on benzene levels in the air where you live are available on the EPA website.

Because spina bifida begins to occur in the very early stages of embryonic development, it is actually possible for a father exposed to environmental contaminants or medications like methotrexate to expose the fetus as well.

If you have a child with spina bifida and you believe you may have been exposed to any of these substances here in the Baltimore, Maryland area, please contact the experienced Baltimore birth defect lawyers at the Yost Legal Group in Maryland today for a free and frank discussion of your legal options.