While pregnant, women need to be especially careful about what foods and medications that they put into their bodies. Early in the first trimester, while many women are not even aware that they are pregnant, the baby is at a heightened risk for birth defects due to medications being ingested by their mother. Our birth defects attorneys have been writing for months about the drug Topamax and its connection to cleft lip and palate birth defects.
Mothers Taking Active Ingredient in Topamax Three Times More Likely to have Children with Birth Defects
A recent study called Comparative Safety of Topiramate During Pregnancy, performed by researchers from Harvard University, MassGeneral Hospital for Children, and Loyola University in Chicago, has come to the conclusion that topiramate increases chances of birth defects. According to the study, women who take the active ingredient in the medication Topamax during their first trimester of pregnancy increase the risk of their children being born with major oral birth defects. The study analyzed statistics of 6,456 pregnant women and “compared the frequency of adverse pregnancy outcomes for those who had used topiramate during their first trimester to a control group.” The results were that the children whose mothers took topiramate were almost three times more likely to be born with a birth defect, 3.8 %, than the mothers who did not, 1.3 %.
Birth Defects Lawyers in New Jersey and Philadelphia
If you are a pregnant and currently taking Topamax or any drug containing topiramate, speak with your doctor as soon as possible about other, safer options. If you are a parent who has recently given birth to a child who suffers from a birth defect that you believe can be attributed to a prescription drug, contact the Mininno Law Office to speak with birth defects lawyers and discuss your legal rights. You may also call for a free case evaluation and consultation at (856) 833-0600 in New Jersey, or (215) 567-2380 in Philadelphia.
Many parents are alarmed after their child’s surgery when new scars are red. During the healing process, the body re-routes blood vessles to the scar to bring an extra supply of blood, creating that red color. The red will progressively darken for about three months and will be raised off the skin and stiff to the touch. Eventually, the scar will fade, soften, and flatten. Ultimately, the scar should look like a soft, flat, white line.
A cleft lip can lead to extreme alterations of one’s life and can be difficult to cope with. If your newborn baby has a cleft lip or cleft palate, you will be bombarded with information from medical professionals across varying fields. These professionals will provide you with an abundance of helpful information, however, it is natural to feel overwhelmed. You need not panic as there are many other parents –like yourself—who are going through the same situation. Birth defects, such as 
Your doctor will take your personal circumstance into deep consideration and will advise you of the great benefits that are possible from surgery, along with the potential risks and side effects. The advantages of surgery are obvious in helping the child’s dentition, oral health, and your child’s ability to lead a “normal” life. However, when making this important decision, you, as the parent, need to be aware of the potentially harmful effects. 
Most children with these birth defects require a first, initial surgery as early as 3 months. These surgeries are often invasive and require tedious work on behalf of the plastic surgeon. This initial surgery is crucial to preventing disease from forming in the exposed region of the cleft lip, and to providing a healthier dentition. This preliminary surgery helps restore the actual structure of the face. 
When a cleft does not affect the mouth’s palate structure it is referred to as cleft lip. Cleft lips can occur on one or both sides of the lip which are generally referred to as unilateral or bilateral clefts. The first category of cleft lip is known as an incomplete cleft. An incomplete, or partial, cleft lip occurs at the top of the lip. The cleft appears as a small gap or indentation that does not reach the nose.
Psychosocial problems are not a definite side effect of birth defects and generally, when children have their cleft lip operated upon soon after birth they will have a strong recovery and a healthy social life. The risk in adolescents is far greater when they suffer from birth defects and this may lead to self-esteem, social, and behavioral issues. As children grow older, dealing with a cleft lip may lead to issues relating to self concept, relationships with their peers, and worries with their appearance. During the preschool years, ages three through five, children who have a cleft lip or cleft palate tend to be on par with peers without any oral malformations with regards to self-concept. As children grow older however, they may feel increased pressure and face more social issues. As children have increased interaction with other kids, children who have clefts tend to have more dissatisfaction with relationships with peers and have an increased level of social anxiety. With age, children will generally experience increased social anxiety and pressures with regards to their cleft. These visible deformities may yield a stigma and it is best to have birth defects treated as soon as possible in order to limit the social issues children face as they age.
This trained professional is a source of assistance and alternatives to every day needs. For instance, if your child has a cleft lip he or she will likely have difficulty producing plosives, which include “p”, “b”, “k”, “g”, “t”, and “d”. These plosives are formed by the sealing of the lips and releasing of pressure. Without a full seal of the lips, these words will be problematic in every day speech. A speech language pathologist will work one on one with your child and your family to help develop a stronger labial seal and alternatives to producing these sounds, in order to help your child efficiently communicate. Speech therapy will help your child work on articulation inaccuracies, plosive sounds, and audible speech.
A newborn baby with a cleft lip will have trouble sealing the lips and nasal cavity, preventing efficient sucking. The orbicularis oris, the muscle of the lips, has been affected due to the cleft lip , which prevents the muscles from properly functioning to provide a strong labial seal. If the cleft lip is specific to one area of the lip (i.e. the right or left side) it may help to breastfeed your baby at an angle towards the side of the lip without the malformation. By repositioning yourself, you can help your baby create a stronger labial seal, allowing him or her to suck more efficiently.