Background: The introduction of HAART has brought about a significant reduction in thernmorbidity and mortality of patients with HIV infection. However, the mortality rate of patientsrntreated with HAART is still very high in resource-poor settings. Factors contributing to thisrnhigh mortality rate are poorly understood.rnObjective: The objective of this study is to identify the determinant factors of HIV associatedrnmortality in a cohort of HIV infected patients treated with HAART.rnMethod: The study has reviewed patient forms and follow up cards of 832 patients treatedrnwith HAART in Jimma University Specialized Hospital from 2003-2007. The minimum followrnup time was 1 month and the maximum was 78 months. Kaplan-Meier survival curves andrnLog-Rank test were used to compare the survival experience of different groups of patients andrnproportional hazards Cox model was used to explore the factors associated with increased riskrnof mortality.rnResults: Some 144 patients died during the follow up time of which 48.6% and 68.8% deathsrnoccurred within three and six months of HAART initiation, respectively. The overall meanrnestimated survival time of patients was 63.7 months. Factors/covariates associated withrnincreased risk of mortality were older age, (HR=1.03, 95% CI: 1.01-1.051), low CD4 count atrnbaseline (HR=0.994, 95% CI: 0.992-0.996), low weight at baseline (HR for a 5kgrnchange=0.902, 95% CI: 0.816-0.996), bedridden and ambulatory functional status (HR=6.904,rn95% CI: 4.005-11.902) and (HR=2.877, 95% CI: 1.899-4.360), respectively, co-infection withrnTB (HR=1.906, 95% CI: 1.305-2.784) and substance use (HR=1.42, 95% CI: 1.016-1.985).rnConclusion: The mortality rate of patients was high at the earlier time of treatment. Moreover,rnlaboratory and clinical factors are associated with increased risk of mortality. Thus, thosernpatients with poor laboratory/clinical characteristics should be identified and treated earlyrnbefore they progress to advanced disease stages