The FDA has let medical device companies file reports of injuries and malfunctions outside a widely scrutinized public database, which leave doctors and medical sleuths in the dark.

A small but growing number of doctors prescribe drugs 'off-label' for their possible anti-aging effects, even though there is scant evidence that the practice works.

More ailments are being treated with medical devices, including implants. And most of these, unlike pharmaceuticals, don't go through human testing before being offered to patients.

The number is the highest since the federal government five years ago launched the Hospital Acquired Conditions Reduction Program, created by the Affordable Care Act.