Hair loss tends to progress over the years, although the rate can vary dramatically from person to person and the rate of loss can vary significantly over time. The degree and pattern of your baldness can be assessed by comparing it to the standard patterns described in the Norwood Scale (shown below), which illustrates the most common configurations of male pattern baldness. Comparing your present hairline and hair density with a photograph taken a few years ago may help you to determine for yourself how much hair has been lost and in what areas. Having a picture taken of the crown area at the back of your head will be helpful in determining how much hair has been lost in this area.
The pattern of one's hair loss commonly follows the specific type first presented. So, a person who begins as a Class 3 typically will evolve into a Class 4, then a Class 5, and so on, whereas a Class 3a becomes a Class 4a and then a Class 5a. Often, due to the hereditary nature of male pattern baldness, your future pattern of hair loss can be identified in the pattern of older male members of your family on either your mother or father's side.
| Regular Norwood Classes |
|
Type I
. No recession
. "Adolescent" or "Juvenile" hairline |
|
|
Type II
. Temporal recession < 1"
. Mild recession along frontal hairline
. "Mature" hairline |
|
|
Type III
. Further frontal recession
. Deeper recession at corners
. Earliest stage of balding |
|
|
Type III vertex
. Hail loss predominantly in vertex (crown)
. Frontal hairline recession may be present |
|
|
Type IV
. Further frontal hair loss and temporal recession
. Enlargement of vertex (crown)
. Solid band of hair across top separating front from vertex |
|
|
Type V
. Frontal and temporal areas enlarge further
. Band separating the two areas becomes narrower and sparser |
|
|
Type VI
. Frontal and vertex balding areas merge into one and increase in size |
|
|
Type VII
. Narrow horseshoe band of hair
. Low hairline in the back
. Hair in permanent zone may be sparse |
|
|
| Type A Variant Norwood Classes |
. Frontal recession keeps advancing backwards
. Single area of balding
. Eventual extent of balding tends to be more limited than in Regular classes |
|
Type IIa
. Entire frontal hairline recedes |
|
|
Type IIIa |
|
|
Type IVa
. Hair loss moves past this "mid-coronal" line |
|
|
Type Va
. Hair loss extends towards the vertex
. Back part of bald area is narrower than in the regular Norwood VI |
|
