Call a Bronx Birth Injury Attorney When a Child Has Development Delays
When people think of calling for a Bronx birth injury attorney, they often look for one immediately after the child is born. However, some types of damage are hard to notice; a baby may seem fine for the first few months, but there may come a time that the child’s parents would start to notice something wrong in the way their child is developing. Every child develops at their own pace, but there are benchmarks that children should to meet after a given time. For example, a child should be able to use single words by 12 months of age; if they miss this, it is a sign there is something wrong.
Childhood Development Delays
There are several areas of development that a child should be progressing in. First is language and speech development. This is the most common developmental delay and can be attributed to many reasons like hearing loss or a learning disability. Be patient with your child, but if your child is not responsive to sounds in the first few months or have difficulty with words after the first year, contact a doctor.
Another developmental delay can be found in vision and movement. If your child is not moving properly or not responding to visual stimuli, there may be problems.
Behavioral and cognitive development can also be noticeably delayed. If a child has problem responding to friendly overtures and never laughs or smiles, he or she may have trouble developing social skills. Coupled with difficulty in cognitive skills, this can be bad for the child’s future.
Negligence Can Cause Development Delays
Treating childhood developmental delays can be expensive. They require years of treatment and can negatively affect a child in the long term. Genetics is just one factor why developmental delays happen; genetic defects can result in disorders like Down’s syndrome that makes development of cognitive skills difficult. However, there is another prominent reason for developmental delays: medical malpractice.
For example, a doctor may think it is fine to prematurely deliver a baby. However, because of this choice, the baby can suffer brain damage, leading to developmental delays. When the parents notice this, they should contact a birth injury lawyer for Bronx residents, like one working with The Law Offices of Joseph Lichtenstein. Skilled attorneys would be able prove a doctor’s negligence and their responsibility for the injury. Ensure that your family get properly compensated with the help of legal professionals.
Sources:
Birth Trauma: The Most Common Cause Of Development Delays, Healthy.Net
What is developmental delay and what services are available if I think my child might be delayed?, How Kids Develop
Birth-Related Medical Malpractice, NOLO