Hair Replacement systems, also known as hairpieces, hair replacements, hair systems or toupees, have improved over the past decade. Quality hair replacement systems are now refined in construction and light weight. For those with extensive baldness who require a full head of hair to be satisfied they offer a quick and nearly instant solution.

Hair systems are constructed of human hair or synthetic fiber. Recent advances have made the synthetic hair much more natural in appearance and texture.

A quality hair replacement system is specially constructed for an individual recipient. These systems are made of real hair, synthetic, or both. They're designed to attach to the head for an extended period ranging from 3-6 weeks, without ever being taken off. Visit Farrell Hair Systems for more information.

Hair systems can work for both men and women. In fact, more and more women are opting for hair systems over wigs, as they can be more comfortable and look more natural.

The process of getting a Hair Replacement System

Typically clients first visit a hair salon for an evaluation. The extent of their hair loss is measured. They are given information including prices, maintenance, and future schedules. Usually, it takes several days for the system to be prepared, based on the client’s preferences.

While a person can get virtually any type of look, you are generally guided towards an option that looks more undetectable and realistic. These studios employ their own hair stylists to achieve ideal looks. Clients can visit these stylists for monthly haircuts or touch-ups.

With these hair systems, a fine mesh foundation is placed on the scalp's balding area and precisely cut to these dimensions. Later, real or synthetic hairs will be inserted into a foundation to create the "Hair System" or hair piece.

The foundations of the past were actually designed to be thicker and more durable. Fortunately, today's foundations are much thinner to make them undetectable. However, this thinness comes at a price, literally. The thinner a system the more delicate it will be and thus it will require being replaced more often.

Once completed, the hair system is attached to the client scalp using clips, weaving, and/or adhesive. The hair system is then styled to match your existing hair.

Maintaining a Hair Replacement System

The stylist in the studios also remove the systems about once a month for maintenance, cleaning, and styling. During these adjustments a person can expect to have their hair system removed, their scalp thoroughly shampooed, and their hair cut. The hair system may also be touched up and or colored if needed.

It's crucial to carefully groom the hair system to maintain a natural appearance. With a quality system, a person can expect to continue doing all normal activities such as running, bicycling, and weightlifting.

However, hair systems typically require time, money, and effort to keep them looking their best. And some clients may feel some discomfort, as well as some insecurity that their hair system may be detected.

Various Methods of Attaching a Hair System

Hair replacement systems can be attached in a variety of ways. They can adhere to the skin, hair, or a combination of both.

When attached to existing hair this method can provide an extra sense of security for clients who enjoy active lifestyles. This type of attachment goes by names such as fusion, weaves, cabling, beading and bonding. Because this type of attachment depends on the rate of the hair's growth, the system must be reattached periodically.

Hair replacement systems can also be applied to bare skin. This can be performed in a variety of ways, such as waterproof and biologically safe glues as well as two-sided tape. However, while these glues and tapes are generally safe for the skin, it's possible to have an adverse reaction. For that reason you should tell the studio stylist of any discomfort.

It's also possible to have a hair system applied surgically. In this case, small skin grafts, known as "tunnel grafts", are taken from a donor site. These tunnel grafts are then formed into tiny loops and placed in the balding areas where the outer edges of the hair system will be attached. The edge of the hair system is then attached to these loops once they have grown into the scalp. Since the hair system is now attached to the scalp, rather than the existing hair that grows out over time, the hair system does not get progressively looser over time.

However, this method of attachment is not recommended due to possible complications such as skin infections.

Finding a Quality Hair Replacement System

If you're considering a hair attachment, you need to be aware of just how to locate the nearest studio, as well as what to look for in one.

Of course you can use the Yellow Pages or the Internet to locate a qualified studio. However, once you do locate one, it may be a good idea to check with the local Better Business Bureau for complaints against the company. It's usually only a problem if there have been multiple complaints against the company.

It's best to consider a hair attachment studio that specializes in non-surgical hair replacement systems. And once you do find an appropriate office, it's best to bring along a photograph showing your ideal look. Plus, try to meet with other clients who are wearing the hair system you may be considering.

It's also important to find out how a company handles potential client problems and complaints. Do they have money-back guarantees or trial periods? These are important questions to ask.

You may also want to check around with the American Hair Loss Council (AHLC), one of the leading groups governing hair loss. The AHLC can't endorse any individual firm. However, this organization supplies clients with a list of local AHLC specialists, known as the American Hair Loss Council Source Book. The specialist and studios on this list are all required to sign a statement that says they honor the group's code of ethics. This code is designed to protect consumers.

Is it Effective in Stopping Hair Loss?

Use of low level laser therapy (LLLT) devices for treating hair loss has been heavily debated for some time by reputable hair restoration physicians and patients on our hair loss forum. While some physicians reject its use entirely, others use laser hair treatment as a regular part of their practice. Additionally, some physicians believe that laser light therapy can assist with postoperative healing after hair transplant surgery.

History of Laser Light Therapy

Shortly after the first working laser was invented in 1964, a researcher from Semmelweis University of Budapest named Andre Mester developed a theory that exposure to cold laser light (similar to UV radiation emitted by the sun) may eventually lead to cancer. To test his theory, Mester shaved a group of mice and trapped some of them in a cage with constant cold laser light exposure leaving the other half unexposed as a control group. To his surprise, the light didn’t cause cancer in any of his animal subjects. Instead, mice that were exposed to the laser light therapy grew back their shaved fur much faster than the control group. Mester named his discovery photo-biostimulation. His theory was that somehow, the laser light had stimulated the hair cells into an accelerated state of hair growth.

Laser Therapy as a Hair Loss Treatment

Today, low level laser therapy is being used as a hair loss treatment. To treat baldness with laser light therapy, laser rays are directly applied to the scalp by a mechanical device so that red blood cells are stimulated. Lasers are said to work by converting ATP (Adenosine Triphosphate) to ADP (Adenosine Diphosphate), releasing energy and causing cellular metabolic changes. During this process, additional nutrients and oxygen are provided to the scalp assisting the normal chemical processes performed by those cells, increasing overall blood circulation. Lasers, when applied to the scalp and hair, have been said to improve overall hair quality, promote hair growth, and increase hair shaft diameter.

Laser treatment devices have a similar appearance to a hood hair dryer which is placed over top of your head. The low level laser toll will rotate allowing laser rays, usually red in color, to be discharged into your scalp. Hand held devices such as the Hairmax comb have also been developed and resemble a brush in appearance.

Promoting healthy hair growth however, is not the same as the regrowth of miniaturized hairs brought on by genetic female hair loss or male pattern baldness (MPB). So what clinical evidence exists, if any, that laser therapy is an effective treatment? Below we take a closer look at the available data including exclusive interviews of leading hair restoration physicians.

Varying Opinions of Well Respected Physicians

Physicians have long shared varying views on whether or not laser treatment is viable. While some well respected physicians reject its use entirely, some believe that LLLT can provide marginal benefit for men and women suffering from androgenic alopecia (genetic baldness). Additionally, some physicians believe that laser hair treatment can assist a hair transplant patient’s postoperative wound healing process and expedite hair growth.

Dr. Charles (one of our well respected members of the Coalition of Independent Hair Restoration Physicians) believes it may provide similar hair loss prevention benefit to Rogaine in the mid vertex area and crown. Benefits in the frontal area include an increase in overall hair quality rather than hair loss prevention.

Dr. Charles believes LLLT works better when combined with Propecia (finasteride) and Rogaine (minoxidil). Like Propecia and Rogaine, he believes low level laser therapy may help some patients more than others and works better in patients with only minimal thinning hair.

Dr. Charles believes in helping balding men and women develop and maintain realistic expectations and he doesn’t oversell its benefits. Because lasers are free from side effects, he always tells his patients that the biggest risk is the money. Dr. Charles believes more research on laser hair treatment is needed.;

Dr. Williams of the Coalition has been using laser hair treatment as a regular part of his practice for over 2 years and feels quite confident in its success in some patients. In his experience, LLLT promotes healthy hair growth and can increase hair shaft diameter of miniaturized hair affected by genetic female hair loss and male pattern baldness in some patients.

Dr. Williams offers 16 free laser therapy sessions to local males following hair transplant procedures and encourages his female transplant patients to undergo laser light therapy for one full year at a highly discounted rate. Dr. Williams usually notices faster transplanted hair regrowth and a quicker resolution of postoperative telogen effluvium or “shock loss”, if it occurs.

Because androgenic alopecia is a progressive condition, Dr. Williams encourages male patients to use Propecia while encouraging out of town females to use the Hairmax laser comb to help maintain their existing hair. Dr. Williams would like to see more formal studies defining the benefits of lasers as a hair loss treatment, but he is encouraged by his experience with it to date.

Dr. Alan Feller (also a member of the Coalition) is one doctor who remains skeptical. "Medical lasers work in only one way, and that is to deliver energy to a target. When it strikes the target the energy is absorbed and converted to heat. That's it". Dr. Feller believes that more compelling evidence is needed to promote low level laser therapy (LLLT) as a hair regrowth solution or to stop hair loss.

Recent Scientific Studies

study presented at the last International Society of Hair Restoration Surgery (ISHRS) meeting in Las Vegas (2007) by Maria A Muricy, MD, confirms increase in hair shaft diameter, fullness, and overall quality with laser hair treatment alone. Additionally, some statistically significant evidence reveals that low level laser therapy when combined with 5% minoxidil (the active ingredient in FDA approved Rogaine) provided noticeable cosmetic benefits for women in particular. However, this study also showed that laser hair loss treatment alone produced no statistically significant new hair growth in both men and women.

Laser Hair Therapy and FDA Approval

Another important issue to consider is the significance and meaning of the FDA clearance (not approval) of the Hairmax laser comb. Though some have proposed the Hairmax laser comb was only approved for safety, apparently the FDA did require Lexington International (who funded the study) to provide it with a study on its efficacy (effectiveness) in treating baldness. But this study and its results have not been released to the public since Lexington International had the option of submitting the study to the FDA privately. The obvious question then is – why would Lexington hide their study from the public if it proved the efficacy of laser hair regrowth?

While the Hairmax laser comb device was found by the FDA to be safe based on its “substantial equivalence” to previously approved laser light therapy devices and thus “cleared” (not “approved”), it was unclear to what extend the FDA reviewed or cleared it based on its effectiveness in treating hair loss. To learn more about the FDA standards for “approving” food and drugs and for “clearing” medical devices visit www.fda.gov

It appears that much of the laser hair treatment industry is now promoting their devices as “FDA Approved for Hair Loss” as if they are on par with the two only FDA approved hair loss solutions Propecia (finasteride) and Rogaine (minoxidil). However, until laser hair treatment provides compelling public evidence of its effectiveness in treating hair loss, it is quite possible that the effectiveness of low level laser therapy may be oversold by some companies. We expect that time will tell.

Today's evolutionary high point - Ultra Refined Follicular Unit Transplantation

By relocating these carefully prepared bald-resistant follicular units, physicians doing "follicular unit hair transplantation" recreate a natural pattern of hair in the balding areas.

To do this properly is a very time consuming and exacting process. It requires a team of meticulous medical technicians working hand-in-hand with the hair transplant surgeon in a very lengthy surgical procedure.

Ultra Refined Grafting - Smaller Blades, Smaller Incisions, Smaller Grafts

Today's micro surgical blades, like the size of hair grafts, have become ever smaller and now enable hair transplant surgeons to safely make more tiny graft incisions in a given area then ever before. Surgeons are then able to "dense pack" select areas with as many as 40 to 60 follicular unit grafts per square centimeter. This graft density is as much as twice that of the standard follicular unit hair transplant procedure.

Such high densities of transplanted hair typically produce the appearance of fullness even after only one surgical session. Patients also experience rapid healing and no visible skin distortions due to the tiny size of these incisions.

Ultra Refined Follicular Unit Grafting - Hard on the clinic but easy on the patient.

Ultra refined follicular unit grafting raises the bar for physicians and their staff. This delicate and demanding hair transplant procedure requires more skill and careful attention to be performed properly. The smaller and more tightly packed incisions require more closely dissected follicular unit grafts that are carefully trimmed under microscopes. These small and densely packed incisions are also more difficult to place the grafts into.

This procedure also requires more careful patient selection, as "dense packing" of grafts is not appropriate for all patients.

Ultra Refined Follicular Unit Transplantation - the new "Gold Standard"

In the hands of a highly skilled physician and staff the Ultra refined follicular unit hair transplant procedure can achieve excellent new hair growth that is so natural that it is undetectable even under close scrutiny.

While the standard micro "follicular unit" hair transplant does produce natural looking results, its ability to achieve high density in only one surgical session is limited. Thus patients may have to do subsequent surgical sessions in a transplanted area to achieve a full look.

The many patient benefits of this new ultra refined procedure are significant and include:

• The ability to get excellent hair density in only one surgical session.
• Minimal trauma in the graft recipient area with rapid post surgical healing.
• Little or no visible pitting or distortions in the transplanted areas.
• More natural direction and angulation of the transplanted hair.

All physician members of the Coalition perform Ultra Refined Follicular Unit Hair Transplantation.

While many hair transplant physicians perform quality follicular unit hair transplants, only some of them are capable of performing large sessions of ultra refined follicular hair transplantation. However, all members of the Coalition of Independent Hair Restoration Physicians perform ultra refined grafting with excellent results.

The Future of Surgical Hair Restoration

The amount of hair you can transplant is ultimately limited by the amount of hair follicles you can safely relocate from the bald resistant donor area at the back and sides of your head.

Some day it may be possible for physicians to create multiple hair follicles from one original follicle. This process typically called Hair Multiplication or more incorrectly Hair Cloning is currently being investigated by several research scientists and hair restoration physicians.

If and when this process is successfully developed patients would no longer be limited by the finite amount of bald resistant hairs that can be relocated from their donor area. Hair multiplication would result in a virtually limitless supply of hair available for hair transplants.

This would be especially good news for men or women with extensive baldness and a very limited supply of donor hair. Even those with extensive baldness would theoretically be able achieve thick full heads of hair.

However, experts believe that we are at least ten years away from hair multiplication being available, if even then. But perhaps some day scientists will be able to use gene therapy to halt the balding process without drugs or surgery.

Learn about modern hair loss drug treatments that work.

While hair restoration surgery is now a proven treatment for restoring hair where it has been lost, Hair loss medication such as Rogaine (minoxidil) and Propecia (finasteride), have made real contributions toward stopping and even reversing hair loss.

During the late 70’s and early 80’s it was discovered that minoxidil, used as a heart medication, had hair growing side effects. Minoxidil was tested for use as a topical scalp treatment for hair loss and proved to inhibit hair loss in many test subjects.

It has proven to be effective to some degree in slowing the hair loss process. For a minority of people it can even grow back lost hairs in the crown area (back of the head). However, Rogaine (minoxidil) does not slow or reverse the balding process in the frontal hairline area.

Rogaine is typically applied topically on the scalp twice a day, morning and evening. But once usage is discontinued the hair loss which had been inhibited will resume and the hair that was saved will be lost.

Rogaine originally required a prescription, but in 1995, it became available in 2% strength Rogaine over-the-counter. Today, men and women can buy 5% strength lotion over-the-counter as Rogaine or as generic minoxidil.

To date Rogaine (minoxidil) and Propecia (finasteride)are the only hair loss medications with FDA approval. Propecia’s active ingredient, finasteride, was originally used to treat enlarged prostate glands. It was discovered that, like minoxidil, it had the “side effect” of stopping male pattern baldness and for some even regrowing hair.

Propecia is taken as a pill once daily and acts to inhibit the body’s ability to create dyhydrotestosterone or “DHT”. DHT acts as the active ingredient or catalyst in the balding process.

Rogaine and Propecia

The 90’s brought great advances in hair restoration, both surgical and non surgical. Now most people can realistically halt and reverse their hair loss with truly natural results.

In 1988 minoxidil, Rogaine, became the first hair loss medication to be approved by the FDA for the treatment of hair loss.

In 1998 the FDA approved Propecia for the treatment of hair loss. Propecia (finasteride) should NOT be taken by woman or children for any reason.

Learn about all your hair loss treatment options.