Medical News Today, May 17, 2007 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 and infectious diseases at BCM and lead author of the report. Giordano's study, carried out in the Veterans Affairs population, determined that staying in care made a difference to longevity. Studying those in the VA population eliminated the issue of ability to pay for care, enabling him and his colleagues to look at care alone. Giordano and his colleagues looked at 2,619 men with HIV for more than four years. Most were diagnosed between 1997-1998 at a VA hospital or clinic and began treatment after Jan. 1, 1997. Also taking part in the study were Drs. A. Clinton White, Jr. and Maria E. Suarez-Almazor. 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.