Hair Loss: the Norwood scale

Most hair loss follows a pattern that has been codified in a table called the Norwood Scale (see figure 1 below). Norwood hair loss patterns are determined genetically.

There are seven patterns of hair 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.

Figure 1. Norwood Scale