[Factors associated with loss to follow-up in HIV-infected patients, Ségou, Mali].

Objective: to study the factors associatedlost to follow-up in People Living with HIV on antiretroviral therapy (ART) at the Ambulatory Treatment Center (ATC).

Methods: This is a retrospective case-control study of two years. It concerned all HIV-infected patients aged 15 and over who were started on ART for at least 4 months. Each case was matched with two controls by sex and age ± 5 years.

Results: The proportionlost to follow-up was 21%.The median age lost to follow-up was 36 years (IQR: 30-42 years), sex ratio was 1.4 in favor of women. The median initial CD4 cell count was 151 cells / mm (IQR: 51-245) versus 207 (IQR: 67-482) for controls and the median lost to follow-up was 6 months (IQR: 4-9 months): 5-16) for controls. In multivariate analysis, the factors associated lost to follow-up were: unmarried (adjusted OR = 3.84, P = 0.0346); the initial CD4 <200 cells / mm3 (adjusted OR = 3.88, P = 0.0393) and the duration of ARV <= 6 months (adjusted OR = 6.59, P = 0.0047). The protective factors against lost to follow-up were: Body Mass Index of the last visited > = 18.5 kg / m2 (adjusted OR = 0.07, P = 0.0069); (OR adjusted = 0.06, P = 0.0197) and initiation to ART in the rainy season (adjusted OR = 0.21, P = 0.0220).

Conclusion: These results can be supplemented by quantitative and qualitative studies.