he gave stephen the overdose of insulin and killed him. the manufacturers keep tight controls on product information. german authorities don't have any idea how many devices are actually on the market. the companies are required by law to report problems that may damage patients' health but they often don't and the companies face no penalties. companies such as medtronic have been accused of playing down possible effects with their products. tronic is the world's largest manufacturer of medical devices. last year the company agreed to a forty three million dollars settlement with investors over allegations of improper payments to surgeons to cover up problems with a bone growth product. the company denied any wrongdoing. paul factor is an investigative journalist who's done research on possible conflict