Eureka Alert, May 11, 2007 HOUSTON - People with HIV who drop out of care do not live as long as those who remain under a doctor's treatment, said Baylor College of Medicine and Veterans Affairs researchers in a report published in the June 1 issue of Clinical Infectious Diseases and available on line. "In an era when highly active therapy directed against HIV (the human immunodeficiency virus that causes AIDS) is keeping people alive, understanding the value of regular medical care is crucial," said Dr. Thomas Giordano, assistant professor of medicine - infectious diseases at BCM and lead author of the report.  Others who took part in this work include Drs. A. Clinton White, Jr., Maria E. Suarez-Almazor, Christine Hartman, and Robert O. Morgan of BCM and the Michael E. DeBakey Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Houston. White is now with The University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston and Suarez-Almazor is with The UT M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston.