I drove up to Charlotte to to see Ailene and Dr. Cooley. They were high on my list based on multiple conversations with Ailene, the messages and phone calls exchanged with patients found on the forum, as well as seeing in person results of patients, and the many positive posts about Dr. Cooley.

The visit only enhanced my view of the practice. I was there almost 2 1/2 hours. Most of the time I was with Ailene, but had as much time to talk to Dr. Cooley as I wanted. It was good back and forth conversation. I didn't feel lectured, preached to, or like I was being sold something. Even though Ailene has been dealing with patients for a long time, she solicited feedback from me on my experience with her and the practice. With prior permission with the patient of the day, I was allowed to observe some of a procedure.

This is going to sound like a backhanded complement, and I don't mean it that way. It appears that when you spend your money with them, your money is all going to the science. The one other practice I visited had faux finished columns, fountains, high end furnishing and art work. If that sort of stuff is important to you, this probably isn't the practice for you. I'm guessing they wouldn't disagree with that. Ailene said they were about to move into a new office space, but I'm guessing that they will not look to put on a show with there office. It would match the character of the practice. The equipment they use and the measures they take to make the patient feel comfortable and well taken care of are top priorities.

For anyone considering Dr. Cooley, I would be happy to answer any questions about my experience.

Carl

Carl,

Dr. Cooley and Ailene enjoy taking their time to educate their patients and help them develop realistic expectations.

I am pleased, but not surprised, that you were impressed by their level of care and dedication to state of the art hair transplant surgery.

If you do go through with surgery, Dr. Cooley is certainly one to consider. A number of his patients can be found by using the "find" feature on our forum and on our hair loss weblogs.

Best wishes for a new head of hair :-)

Bill (Falc)

Bill,

I wasn't sure whether to put this post here or in the questions and answers section. Please feel free to move it to that section if you think it is a better fit.

Carl

Dr. Cooley drives a white lambo, no?

jkjkjk Glad your consult went so well; was their prognosis similiar to the other place you visited?

I've spoken to a few other practices on the phone, but the only other in-person consult I had was with Dr. Griffin here in Atlanta. I had that consult very early on in my process, before spending the many hours on this forum researching. From other posts regarding Dr. Griffin, I understand he is often fairly conservative on how large a session he likes to do. Compared to Dr. Cooley, Dr. Griffin suggested about half as many grafts. I believe Dr. Cooley's assessment is much more accurate. He uses a high power, close-up camera to evaluate both my donor and recipient area. Dr. Cooley's suggestion was also in line with phone consults that I had with a few other practices.

Carl

Carl,

This section of the forum is fine since it's regarding a "surgeon review".

In my opinion, Dr. Griffin also does high quality work and can certainly handle sessions larger than 2500 grafts when appropriate for the patient. However, to date, not a lot of his work can be found on our forum. I trust this will change in the near future.

Did you ask Dr. Griffin why he suggested fewer grafts?

Best wishes,

Bill (Falc)

Bill,

When I had my consult with Dr. Griffin, I didn't have any frame of reference, so no I didn't ask too many follow up questions after he gave his recommendation. To be candid, I've eliminated Dr. Griffin fairly quickly based on price. I've spoken to a number of other coalition practices and all of them are significantly less expensive. I can't see any reasonable rationalization to pay his much higher fees, as compared to other docs at the top of their profession.

Carl