How many grafts for whole scalp coverage?

[SoSoz]

How many grafts does a person need to cover entire scalp? If the person is NW6/7 for e.g? Would getting 2x FUT 2000 grafts and like 5000 fue + some beard grafts be enough to cover entire scalp?

[Gatsby]

It's incredibly subjective. For one the size of one's head can mean the difference between a Norwood 6 needing 5K grafts or 7K grafts. The best way to answer your question really is that everyone needs a tailor made approach to MPB. Whether that be Norwood 2 or Norwood 7. This includes so many variables such as medication, head size as mentioned, skill of the surgeon (first and foremost) and how much research a potential patient spends prior to surgery. All the best!

[Z--]

Gatsby is right. Donor quality and doctor placement is crucial. It's impossible to say what your donor holds in store for you -- you can have many singles or multigrafts.

I also think there's a big difference between Norwood 6 and 7. That said, if you're slick bald and want full coverage (with some thinning), I honestly think you may need an upward of 7 - 9k grafts (assuming no wasted grafts).

[mavigo]

3 hours ago, SoSoz said:

How many grafts does a person need to cover entire scalp? If the person is NW6/7 for e.g? Would getting 2x FUT 2000 grafts and like 5000 fue + some beard grafts be enough to cover entire scalp?

Consulting several HT surgeons would give you the best answer. My answer is a lot. I'd say 10,000 - 12,000. NW 6/7 would obviously need an entire person's donor supply and probably then some, beard grafts like you mentioned. 

[Rahal Hair Transplant]

SoSoz,

This is a very good question and of course as usual, the answer comes with a number of variables. But let me break it down.

The human scalp has approximately 100,000 hair follicles.  This includes the hair on the sides and back of the scalp and the top.  Obviously this is an average and not an exact number for everybody.

The top of a Norwood 5A scalp contains approximately 50,000 of those hair follicles.

Since the average number of hairs per graft is approximately 2.1 or 2.2, you divide 50,000 by one of those numbers. Let’s just make it simple and divide it by 2.  This would equate to approximately 25,000 grafts. 

Assuming the Norwood 5A area of the scalp is completely bald, you would need approximately 25,000 grafts to re-create true density and full coverage   

They say that one doesn’t visually see noticeable signs of hair loss until 50% of one’s hair is lost in a particular area.  Thus, in order to create an adequate illusion of density you typically need approximately 50% of one’s true/natural density.  To find this number you just take 25,000 / 2 (which is how you get 50%) which ends up being approximately 12,500 grafts.

Now, most people don’t have that large number of available grafts however, surgeons who are skilled and experienced can do wonders with less.  Placement and angulation is key.  Most surgeons will re-create a conservative and natural looking hairline using dense packing in the front up to 40 to 50% and then gradually reduce density going back and fade into the crown using approximately 20% to 25% density.

Using the above approach, most patients with a significant donor supply can receive full coverage, decent density and only appear a little thin in the crown area.  However, those with less available donor hair may need to sacrifice either density or coverage depending on their ultimate goals.

A Norwood 6 or 7 will have to be much more realistic because their donor hair is going to be even more limited and the area to cover is going to be even more significant.

I hope this gives you some idea of what can be realistically expected generally speaking. If you are looking for a more specific idea for your situation and are interested in a one on one information session with Dr. Rahal, feel free to send me a private message and I’ll be happy to speak with you and set that up.

Best wishes,

Rahal Hair Transplant

Edited September 13, 2022 by Rahal Hair Transplant