Defective Chinese Drywall Lawsuits

Defective Chinese Drywall Health Hazards

State and federal authorities are still investigating whether defective Chinese drywall can cause any long term negative effects on the health of residents. However, the fear that the drywall may have toxic effects has caused many families to leave their homes. The Consumer Product Safety Commission has received over 600 complaints from homeowners about problems related to Chinese drywall, and many of these complaints were medical in nature. In addition, the Florida Department of Health has received over 300 complaints related to defective Chinese drywall.

Some of the symptoms frequently reported by residents of homes built with Chinese drywall include:

• Recurrent headaches
• Irritated and itchy eyes
• Dizziness
• Sore throat
• Difficulty breathing
• Persistent cough
• Frequent bloody or runny nose
• Sinus infections
• Asthma attacks

In most cases, these symptoms disappeared once the residents moved out of their homes.

If you suspect that your home was built with Chinese drywall and you have experienced any of the symptoms listed above, contact Morgan & Morgan today for a Free Case Evaluation.

It was originally speculated that the defective drywall was leeching sulfuric gases into the houses and causing the corrosion and health problems reported by residents. However, a recent article in the L.A. Times stated that the cause of the Chinese drywall problems may be phosphogypsum, a radioactive phosphorus substance. Phosphogypsum is banned in the U.S. because prolonged exposure to this substance has been shown to increase the chance of the development of lung cancer. While regulations exist in the U.S. to prevent the use of phosphogypsum in construction materials, no such regulations exist in China. Although there currently are no concrete answers about the health dangers of Chinese drywall, there is much cause for concern among those whose dream homes were built with the defective product.