Norwood 8: I believe it exists

[Ronald]

I realize that there is officially no such thing as a Norwood 8.

 

But ever since I have started researching hair transplants, I have been very observant of men's hair, particularily older men's hair.

 

I am always looking for signs of donor thinning, so I can try to picture how much hair could be taken and how a strip scar would look.

 

I have been doing this for years and after looking at thousands scalps, I have concluded that in VERY VERY rare instances, men lose hair past the Norwood 7 pattern, which is why I say that I believe a Norwood 8 pattern exists.

 

What does this NW8 pattern look like? It is basically a NW7 but with additional thinning on the top and bottom of the pattern.

 

Norwood 8, as rare as they are, are NOT hair transplant candidates....not even close. The most extreme NW8 appeared to have lost 90% of his hair, 20% more than is present in your average NW7.

[MikeTheDane]

i have seen a man with a very very thin amount of hair in the back of his head.. about an inch wide.. the rest was gone.

 

I suppose that would classify as a NW 8

[RajToor]

could hair loss due to sickness. I have seen guys lost a lot of hairs due to diabetes..

[Cam Simmons MD ABHRS]

Ronald

 

I think that there may be rare Norwood 8 patients out there. I have been doing hair transplants for 10 years and have not seen one in my office.

 

In my 47 years of life, I do recall seeing a couple of older men who had a narrow, thin fringe of hair in the back with no hair on the sides of their head but if course I did not have the chance to examine them to see if there were other causes. There are also rare men who have diffuse unpatterned hair loss (DUPA).

 

I am a believer in cautious planning but I don't think men should worry that they could go on to develop unpatterned hair loss or a Norwood 8 pattern unless there are already signs. If Norwood 8 exists, Norwood 8 and DUPA would both be quite rare for men.

[pale rider]

GREAT~more good new!

[Dutchie]

Steve Ballmer would qualify as a NW8

 

[Al - Moderator]

Steve Ballmer would qualify as a NW8

 

 

The reason I got a hair transplant is to make sure I wouldn't look like this.

[delancey]

How did that work out for you?

[gillenator]

If there is a Norwood 8 class, it would probably involve or include retro-grade alopecia impacting the donor zone.

[Al - Moderator]

How did that work out for you?

 

It hasn't worked out at all because hair transplants don't actually work on those who really need it most. It's all a big scam, but it happens to work on a few select people, so as long as they can show a few patients that it actually works on then they keep getting away with all the false claims.

[delancey]

BeHappy,

 

I was unfamiliar with your case until now. I just viewed your photos, which are of excellent quality. Have you considered wearing a hair system instead of getting more work done? You have nice facial features and there is no doubt in my mind that your appearance would improve significantly with a state of the art hair system.

[Melvin- Admin]

It hasn't worked out at all because hair transplants don't actually work on those who really need it most. It's all a big scam, but it happens to work on a few select people, so as long as they can show a few patients that it actually works on then they keep getting away with all the false claims.

 

Behappy,

How about the repair work you had done at True&Dorin? has that worked out at all?

[Al - Moderator]

BeHappy,

 

I was unfamiliar with your case until now. I just viewed your photos, which are of excellent quality. Have you considered wearing a hair system instead of getting more work done? You have nice facial features and there is no doubt in my mind that your appearance would improve significantly with a state of the art hair system.

 

I think my face looks young for my age. The lack of decent hair is what ruined my look since I was in my late teens. I did wear a hair system prior to the first hair transplant. The hair transplant was supposed to enable me to get rid of the hair system. I actually suggested we just transplant the front first and I'd keep a hair system just for the crown and then later go back and finish the crown area. That would have allowed me to get a completed look much quicker while not making me feel worried that people could spot the hair system as it would be all real hair in the front half.

 

The "Dr" (in quotes because it turned out he wasn't one) shot that down and told me that would be a dumb thing to do since he could do two scalp reductions to eliminate most of the crown loss and then do a HT for the entire area. That obviously didn't work and I'm still suffering from his lack of caring at all about what was required and how fast I was losing my hair.

 

At this point I don't feel I have enough hair in the sides, back, and temple points for a hair system to look right.

Edited July 12, 2016 by BeHappy

[Al - Moderator]

Behappy,

How about the repair work you had done at True&Dorin? has that worked out at all?

 

I've had two repair procedures so far, but I never posted any pictures of the 2nd one. I have another session scheduled for October. The first one used 610 chest hair grafts. The 2nd was 757 grafts split between chest and beard. The next one will also be a mix of chest and beard. The work that was done is growing, but while I have gained a bit of hair in the areas worked on, I'm still losing hair in all other areas, so I don't feel like I'm getting anywhere.

 

Do not listen to any Dr who tells you transplanted hair is permanent or that they only take hair from areas that are programmed not to fall out. It's not true.

[delancey]

BeHappy, You could always consider wearing a full cap hair system. Skip the additional surgeries. And move on with your life. Many men wear hair systems with great success. When done well, few people would be able to tell. The hairline is the real giveaway imo but when done well, I challenge any layman to tell the difference between a hair system and real hair.

 

I think it is great that you are sharing your story. Many young men don't understand the commitment and the potential consequences of getting a hair transplant at a young age. All the best to you.