NORWOODscale.com
Helping Make Hair Loss History!
Brief overview
The extent and pattern of male pattern baldness is often classified using a scale. Originally developed by Dr James Hamilton in the 1950s the pattern baldness classification system was modified to its current form by Dr O'Tar Norwood in the 1970s. The higher the number, the more advanced the loss. The rate at which men lose hair is very independent. There are men that lose very rapidly in their 20’s up to a NW3 or NW4 and stay at that point for the rest of their lives. Other men can have no detectable amount of hair loss until they are in their 50’s, only to advance to a NW6 or NW7 in just a few short years. Typically, if the individual begins to thin early in life there is a very good chance that he is destined for a great deal of hair loss. One very important indicator that most men can study to possibly help determine how far their hair loss will advance is their family history. Look at any older males in your family. The notion that the balding gene comes from just your mother’s side is an old wives’ tale. Look at both sides: your father, brothers, grandfathers, uncles, etc.
You can only use your family history as a guide. Put it this way, if at least some people in your family have a good degree of hair loss and you are noticing signs at a young age then you may want to prepare yourself for more.
NORWOODscale.com is a resource for those seeking information and clarification on the subject of hair loss/MPB as it is illustrated by the Hamilton-Norwood scale.
There are seven distinct stages of hair loss identified in the Norwood Scale, Norwood I being a normal head of hair with no visible hair loss, Norwood II showing the hair receding in a wedge-shaped pattern. Norwood III shows the same receding pattern as Norwood II, except the hairline has receded deeper into the frontal area and the temporal area. Type IV on the Norwood Scale indicates a hairline that has receded more dramatically in the frontal region and temporal area.
Additionally there is a balding area at the very top center of the head, but there is a bridge of hair remaining between that region and the front. Type V on the Norwood Scale shows that very same bridge between the frontal region and the top center, also called the vertex, beginning to thin. Type VI on the Norwood Scale indicates that the bridge between the frontal region and the vertex has disappeared. Finally, Type VII on the Norwood Scale shows hair receding all the way back to the base of the head and the sides just above the ears.
All Norwood patterns and/or stages are determined genetically.
