Disease Info

Concealing bald spots is for many patients affected with baldness the only existing option to regain the appearance of a full head of hair, as hair regrowth treatments only work for some hair loss conditions. Non-surgical hair replacement is another term used for covering bald spots by non-surgical means. The two main techniques of non-surgical hair replacement today involve the use of hair systems and hair loss concealers. Various types of hair systems exist, such as full wigs, hairpieces, toupees, hair extensions and weaves. They can all look very authentic and have been used for centuries to cover bald areas. However, their main weaknesses are high maintenance costs and, in many situations, the discomfort of wearing them.

Concealers are a relatively new invention, designed to overcome the difficulties associated with wearing and maintaining wigs, but many people think they are not capable of withstanding adverse external conditions and appear unnatural. This no longer seems to be true, as many of them have greatly improved recently, both in terms of their authentic appearance and their resistance to external influences. It pays to understand how different types of hair replacement products work, in order to estimate their suitability for your current condition and compatibility with your lifestyle.

HAIR SYSTEMS
As for hair systems, there are a number of factors determining the user experience, as well as their price, such as the type of hair, the technology used to make the wig, the foundation of the hair system and how it is attached to the scalp. As far as the type of hair goes, it can be artificial or natural. The latter can be of animal or human origin. Human hair requires more care than artificial hair but it looks more authentic, lasts longer and is more comfortable to wear. Its downside is its higher cost and the fact that it can lose its colour when exposed to direct sun for long hours, or break, as normal human hair does. Secondly, hair systems can be hand-tied or machine-tied. Hand-tied wigs happen to be the more expensive alternative and the more authentic-looking solution. In addition, the foundation of a hair system can be either a polymer or a mesh. The polymer foundation is the more affordable, though less comfortable, option but it lasts longer.

The method of fixing a wig to your scalp and blending it with your existing hair is an extremely important factor. The semi-permanently attached hair systems are either glued to your scalp or woven into your existing hair and can only be removed in a hair salon, once every five weeks for cleaning. The temporarily-attached hair systems use double-sided sticky tape or clips to attach the hairpiece to your scalp and existing hair. You can remove and clean them any time you like but they can also be easily and unexpectedly removed, which can lead to embarrassing situations.

One thing that can surprise many potential buyers is the price. Although you can get a wig for a few hundred dollars, the more authentic-looking pieces cost a few thousand dollars and require regular maintenance costing a couple of hundred dollars a month. In addition, you need to buy at least two identical pieces, one to wear while the other is being maintained by your hair salon.

HAIR LOSS CONCEALERS
Hair loss concealers, also known as hair thickeners, are an alternative to hair systems for people who have some miniaturised fine hair left in their balding area. They are more comfortable to wear than wigs but they can never give a full head of hair to a completely bald person. They also seem to be a less expensive solution compared with hair systems.

There are three hair loss-concealing techniques that do the trick by: a) painting your scalp to match your hair colour, b) thickening your hair by coating and penetrating the hair and trapping moisture and volume-building proteins inside the hair shaft and, lastly, c) there are microfibers that cling to your hair like branches to the trunk of a tree, increasing the hair density. Microfiber-based, hair loss concealers can be typically applied in as little as 30 seconds, as opposed to a minimum of five minutes for hair-thickening concealers. However, microfibers are less water-resistant and it is quite difficult to apply them precisely and, therefore, they are not very good at creating an authentic-looking frontal hairline. Their biggest advantage is that they are unrecognizable in your hair, even with a very close inspection.

Hair thickeners, especially those that also colour your scalp, are extremely water-resistant and excellent for frontal hairlines but they take longer to apply. Their greatest weakness, in comparison to microfibers, is that in direct sunlight it can be visible to a sharp eye that the scalp has been painted. Some hair loss sufferers use a combination of two products simultaneously to overcome the weaknesses of individual products and to achieve the most authentic shade and appearance. Most often a combination of a hair thickener and a microfibrous concealer is used. The results of such combinations are often excellent even in people with very thin hair.

It can be concluded that wigs are more expensive and less comfortable than hair-loss concealers but they can cover a completely bald head, so they can also be used with burn patients and patients affected by alopecia areata, where concealers are of little help. Hair-loss concealers are suitable mainly for special occasions, when you want to look your best but many people use them permanently with good success.

About the Author

Visit the Dody’s website to learn more about different types of products used for concealing hair loss and for additional information on dealing with hair loss and other genetically-determined hair conditions such as premature gray hair and dandruff.

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