Hi Robbie,

My name is Alison and I live in San Jose.  I am in my twenties and have CAH.  I also have two sisters with CAH. 

As children we were followed by Dr. Debra Cohen at Kaiser Santa Teresa in San Jose.  We visited a number of endocrinologists in the area (including providers at Stanford and UCSF), but found Dr. Cohen to be the best fit for our family.  She did an excellent job managing our care and we have only positive things to say about her.  None of us suffered from adrenal crisis as children, nor did we experience serious weight, acne, or growth problems.  Dr. Cohen was extremely precise with our cortef dosing and we never had periods of oversuppression or undersuppression as young children.  When we first reached adolescence and had to get in the habit of taking the medication ourselves without being reminded, we would forget to take the medication and there were several occasions when our levels were extremely high.  During those periods we were followed closely (tests/adjustments every month) until we were back in control.

Kaiser (www.kp.org) has a medical staff directory so that you can browse physician Web sites (most major medical centers do).   

I would really encourage you to shop around when it comes to endocrinologists.  My parents hauled us everywhere and paid out-of-pocket for consults with providers our insurance would not cover until they found someone that impressed them.  They have said on several occasions that that was the best money they ever spent.    

You may also want to contact Kelly Leight at CARES Foundation about endocrinologists in the Bay Area.  Kelly maintains lists of recommended providers in all states.  You can obtain her contact information from www.caresfoundation.org.

Feel free to e-mail me if you have additional questions.        

Best regards,

Alison Winters