How the Hair Library Uses Sources

1. Which sources we use

Every medical statement in an entry is supported by a source, in this order of strength:

1. Clinical guidelines and systematic reviews, which pool the results of many studies.
2. Randomised controlled trials, the strongest single studies of a treatment.
3. Other peer-reviewed studies: cohort, case-control and laboratory research, and letters to journals.
4. Professional bodies and hospital health libraries, such as the American Academy of Dermatology, the NHS, Cleveland Clinic, MedlinePlus, DermNet and the International Society of Hair Restoration Surgery.

Each journal source is linked to its PubMed record, its DOI and its free full text where one exists, and labelled with the study type PubMed gives it, so you can see how strong the evidence is.

2. How we use Wikipedia

Wikipedia is a useful map of a topic, but it is not a source we cite. When Wikipedia points to a study, we find and read the study itself and cite that. We do not copy Wikipedia text.

Some images come from Wikimedia Commons. We use them only under licences that allow it, and credit them as described below.

3. Written in our own words

• Facts and findings are explained in our own words, with a numbered reference to the paper they come from.
• We do not copy abstracts, paragraphs, figures or tables from journal articles.
• A short quotation is used only when the exact wording matters, in quotation marks and with its source.
• Diagrams are drawn by our team. When a diagram is based on data from a study, the caption names the study.
• We link to articles on PubMed, publisher sites and PubMed Central. We do not host copies of papers.

4. Image licences

Images are either our own, or openly licensed for reuse, including commercial reuse:

Under every licensed image you will find the author, the licence with a link, the original file, and whether we cropped it.

5. Corrections and retractions

References are checked against PubMed. If a cited article receives a published correction or is retracted, the entry says so next to the reference, and the text is reviewed again. You can see an example in the references of the Hair Bulb entry.

6. Independence

The Hair Library is published by Turkey Hair Center, which arranges hair transplant treatment. Library entries carry no prices or offers, and each is medically reviewed before it is published. Read our editorial policy and corrections policy.