At Norwood 6 and 7 the arithmetic inverts. In early loss the question is how to fill an area; here the bald surface is larger than the donor can cover at natural density, and no technique changes that. The plan stops being about coverage and becomes about allocation.
The decision that defines the result is what will not be covered. A donor spread thinly across the whole scalp produces a uniformly see-through result that satisfies nobody. Concentrating the same grafts on the frontal third produces a face that reads as framed, with a crown left open. The second is a plan; the first is an averaging.
| Approach | Outcome |
|---|---|
| Spread evenly over everything | Thin everywhere; the scalp still shows through |
| Frame first, crown later or never | A defined front; honest, and it holds up close |
| Chase the current bald edge | Stranded hair as the pattern keeps expanding |
Expectations are set in grafts, not in photographs. An advanced pattern is often a two or three-stage project over years, and even completed it will not reproduce adolescent density. Being told this before the first session is the difference between a good result and a disappointing one, because both describe the same head of hair.
Body and beard donor extend the budget but do not replace it. They add bulk behind the frame; the frame itself still comes from the scalp.
Related terms
- Crown vs frontal hair transplant
- Density planning
- Safe donor area
- Body hair transplant
- Androgenetic alopecia
- Diffuse thinning
For how these stages are classified, see the Norwood scale. For what a given pattern actually requires, see how many grafts you need.