Fourteen patients have died since 1996 while using the SynchroMed System. Eleven patients died due to inadvertent injection of a drug into their subcutaneous tissue instead of into the pump. Two patients died from a blockage and one died from an electrical short. Patients may also been harmed by the dilution or extra delivery of medication.
[1] FDA Recall "Medtronic SynchroMed II and SynchroMed EL Implantable Drug Infusion Pumps - Feed Through Failure" (June 3, 2013).
[2] Cortez, M. "Medtronic Recalls Infusion Pump Linked to 14 Deaths," Bloomberg News (June 27, 2013).