Las Vegas Lead Paint Poisoning Lawyers

Sam Harding Law Firm have experience in handling Lead Paint Poisoning cases in Las Vegas, Nevada. If you or a someone you know has suffered serious injury from Lead Paint Poisoning in the state of Nevada, we can help.

The Center for Disease Control and prevention (CDC) identifies Lead Poisoning as the number one environmental health problem affecting the children of United States. According to their estimates around one sixth of children in the United States have a very high level of lead in their blood, and around 10000 children are poisoned annually.

In children below the age of seven the risk of injury is maximum, because they are at a stage when their body and brains are developing and even a small amount of lead can lead to irreversible injuries that do not appear until after many years after the exposure to lead.

Some of the injuries that lead exposure causes are:

• Brain damage (sometimes subtle)
• Learning Disabilities
• Loss of IQ points and intellect.
• Academic Failure.
• Neuropsychological Deficits
• Attention Deficit Disorder
• Antisocial (Criminal) behavior
• Hyperactive Behavior
• Neurological problems
• Encephalopathy (brain swelling)
• Major organ failure
• Coma
• Death

These injuries can be life threatening or can prevent a child from realizing his or her scholastic, vocational, and financial potential, or from becoming a self-sufficient adult. Studies have shown that lead poisoned children are more likely to drop out of high school and to live a lifetime of unemployment. Lead poisoning can take important abilities from a child. The risk of a child's suffering the above injuries begins when a child's blood-lead level rises to a mere 10 micrograms per deciliter of whole blood. Although lead poisoning is treatable, the damages that lead causes to the child's body are permanent and not treatable.

While there are certainly other sources of lead in a child's environment, it is universally accepted that the most common cause of lead poisoning in children is deteriorating (chipping and peeling) lead-based paint on the exterior and interior of residences where the afflicted child lives. When lead-based paint deteriorates because of a landlord's neglect, refusal to obey local and federal health and housing codes and regulations, or refusal to comply with a tenant's request for repainting, the deteriorated lead-based paint becomes lead paint chips (which can be eaten by children) and lead-contaminated paint dust (which can be ingested by children during normal teething, hand-mouth behavior, or putting dusty items in their mouths).

The following precautions should be taken with children under the age of seven:

• Make sure the child receives a blood-lead test at each pediatric check-up at least until age 7.
• Discourage children from putting their hands and toys in their mouths.
• Ensure that the children wash their hands frequently.
• Wash the children's toys frequently to ensure that lead-contaminated dust does not settle on them.

Although the effects of lead poisoning are permanent and irreversible, economic compensation can fund a child's specialized schooling, occupational therapy, future medical care, and other support services. As with other toxic tort cases, Lead-Paint poisoning cases require experienced attorneys who have special expertise with lead poisoning cases.

If you suspect that your child has been poisoned by lead-based paint, or if you notice chipping and peeling paint in your home or apartment, you should consult your child's pediatrician or your local department of public health.