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In a surprising development that further clouds how health care workers can best guard against infection from the H1N1 influenza virus, the authors of a study that found N95 respirators were more effective than surgical masks at preventing the spread of H1N1 retracted their findings at the annual meeting of the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA), MedPage Today reports. The retracted findings are believed to be the basis of several significant policy decisions, including guidance from the Institute of Medicine and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention regarding the use of masks in hospitals and other health care settings, according to MedPage Today. However, the Australian researchers who conducted the original study were criticized for not randomly selecting their control group of nine hospitals. The announcement, which surprised many attendees, followed a "re-analysis prompted by questions from reviewers," which revealed that the findings "were no longer significant," according to a researcher from the University of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia. However, MedPage Today reports that two societies have "consistently argued" that N95 respirators are not the ideal means of guarding against infection from H1N1 and that health care workers' use of the respirators is detrimental for patient care. In addition, the societies have argued that the use of the respirators has side effects for health care employees. Commenting on the findings, a physician from the University of Pennsylvania comments that "we now have public policy that's based on faulty science." The practical implications include cost, as the N95 respirators cost about $4 each, compared with tens of cents for simple surgical masks, and supply chain demands, as N95 respirators are shorter in supply than surgical masks, MedPage Today reports (Smith, MedPage Today, 10/31/09; Smith, MedPage Today, 11/2/09).