If your child has suffered from autism spectrum disorder (ASD) after in utero or prenatal exposure to tylenol or acetaminophen, you may be entitled to recover compensation from a tylenol (acetaminophen) autism lawsuit case or settlement claim.
A team of drug injury lawyers and class action attorneys is investigating potential tylenol lawsuit and settlement cases of individuals whose children have suffered from autism spectrum disorder (ASD) after prenatal exposure to Tylenol or acetaminophen.
Autism or autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopment disorder or disability that affects an autistic child’s ability to behave, communicate, learn, and socially interact with others. Autism is described as a “spectrum” disorder due to the wide variation in both the type and severity of the symptoms suffered by autisic children.
According to estimates from the CDC’s Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring (ADDM) Network, about 1 in 44 children are diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). More than 3.5 million Americans are estimated to be living with autism spectrum disorder.
Tylenol Autism Lawsuit & Settlement Cases
Tylenol autism lawsuit and settlement cases potentially being investigated include claims involving children who are (at present) 17 years old and under who, after being exposed to acetaminophen prenatally while their mothers were pregnant, suffered from autism, including:
- Autism spectrum disorder (ASD)
- Autistic disorder
- Childhood disintegrative disorder
- Pervasive developmental disorder (PDD-NOS)
- Asperger’s syndrome
- Kanner’s syndrome
- Other autism lawsuit cases
Numerous studies have found a potential association between fetal exposure to acetaminophen during pregnancy and the development of autism. For example, one study published in the American Journal of Epidemiology found that children who had prolonged exposure to acetaminophen in the womb had a 20% higher risk of autism.
Another study published in JAMA Psychiatry found that cord biomarkers of fetal exposure to acetaminophen were associated with significantly increased risk of childhood autism in a dose-response fashion.
Autism Symptoms & Signs
Signs and symptoms of autism can include a broad range of deficits in social communications, social interactions, repetetive or restrictive behavior and other characteristics including:
- Avoidance of eye contact
- Difficulty communicating
- Difficulty interacting with others
- Repetive behaviors
- Unusual responses to sensory stimuli
- Differences in body language
- Lack of facial expressions
- Lack of response to name by 9 months of age
- No babbling by 12 months of age
- Not playing interactive games by 12 months of age
- Not engaging in imaginative play
- Using few or no gestures by 12 months of age
- Repeating gestures or sounds
- Repeating of words or phrases (echolalia)
- Repetition of physical movements
- Not sharing interests with others by 15 months old
- Failing to notice others being hurt or upset by 24 months old
- Not noticing or playing with other children by 36 months old
- Not pretending to be something or someone else by 48 months old
- Closely focused or obesessive interests
- Need to follow routines
- Resistance to change
- Stimming or self-stimulatory behavior
- Restricted interests
- Rocking of the body
- Spinning in circles
- Flapping hands
- Head rolling
- Delayed language skills
- Delayed movement skills
- Delayed cognitive or learning skills
- Hyperactive
- Impulsive
- Compulsive behavior
- Epilepsy or seizure disorder
- Unusual eating habits
- Unusual sleeping habits
- Gastrointestinal issues (constipation)
- Unusual mood or emotional reactions
- Anxiety, stress, or excessive worry
- Indifference to temperature extremes
- Self-injury (eye-poking, hand-biting, head-banging, skin picking)
- Other autism symptoms or signs
Symptoms of autism may be present early in a child’s development, usually noticed within the first two or three years of life, and impact the their social, occupational, and/or other areas of daily life.
Tools and procedures used by doctors (e.g., developmental pediatricians, pediatric neurologists and child psychiatrists) to diagnose autism can include patient history, family history, physical exam, patient observation and monitoring of behavior, tests of cognitive and language abilities, interviews with parents, teachers and caregivers, and medical tests to rule out other conditions, among others.
Autism Treatment and Costs
There is presently no cure for autism. However, there are treatments that can be used to manage or control autism symptoms. For example, autism treatments can include behavior and communication therapy (such as applied behavior analysis, including discrete trial training DTT and pivotal response training PRT), developmental therapy (such as speech and language therapy, occupational therapy, sensory integration therapy and physical therapy), educational therapy (such as the Education of Autistic and Related Communication-Handicapped Children or TEACCH approach), social-relational therapy (such as family therapy), pscyhological treatment (such as cognitive-behavior therapy CBT) and pharmacological treatment using medications to manage anxiety, energy levels, ability to focus, depression, seizures, sleep problems and other autism symptoms, among others.
According to JAMA Pediatrics, the total lifetime cost of autism per individual in the United States is more than $2.4 million, attributable to costs for medical care, home health care, special education, after-school care and lost wages of caregivers, among others.
If your child was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) after prenatal exposure to acetaminophen, you may be entitled to compensation from a Tylenol autism lawsuit case or settlement claim. Contact a drug injury lawyer to request a free case review.
Note: We are not accepting tylenol acetaminophen autism cases involving children who are, at present, 18 years of age or older.
*If you or a loved one are experiencing health issues, side effects or complications after taking a prescription drug or medication, we urge you to promptly consult with your doctor or physician for an evaluation.
**The listing of a company (e.g., Johnson & Johnson Consumer Inc., Costco, CVS, Walgreen, Safeway, Kroger, Target, Family Dollar, Rite-Aid, Dollar Tree, 7-Eleven, Big Lots, Sam’s Warehouse, Wal-Mart, etc.) or product (e.g., Tylenol, Nyquil, Dayquil, Excedrin, Mucinex, Robitussin, Alka-Seltzer Plus, Goody’s, Sudafed, Theraflu, Sinex, FluTherapy, Panadol, Midol, etc.) is not meant to state or imply that the company acted illegally or improperly or that the product is unsafe or defective; rather only that an investigation may be, is or was being conducted to determine whether legal rights have been violated.
***The use of any trademarks, tradenames or service marks is solely for product identification and/or informational purposes.
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