What is the difference from a 5 to 6 ? I notice a 5 either has a light dusting on top and/or crown with high sides. A 6, I notice there is NO hair on the top or crown with receeded temples. My real question if I had my top and crown done with a FU HT, will the sides down known as a halo ?

Any luck

Dear Northeast,
From a transplanting viewpoint, there isn't much difference between a Norwood V and a Norwood VI. They both have the large "horse-shoe" shaped area of balding/baldness on top, with a rim of hair visible as you look down from the top onto their head. The difference, as you alluded to, is that the Norwood V still has some residual, thinning hair - most commonly in the area we call the "mid-parietal bridge" which spans from above the ear on one side across to the other. If you look at the various Seinfeld episodes over the ten or so years of the show, you will note that in the show's early years Jason Alexander had a fairly strong mid-parietal bridge, and as the show got toward its last years, this bridge had almost totally disappeared. He had gone from a Norwood V to a Norwood VI. If the fringes on the sides fall down the side of the head, such that in looking down upon the head you see almost entirely bald skin and don't see the horseshoe of hair surrounding it from this view, then it has become the most severe degree of baldness, what we call a Norwood VII stage. Going backwards one more step, the difference between a Norwood IV and a Norwood V is that in a Norwood IV, the bridge of hair across the top is of almost full thickness quality hair, whereas it is starting to thin and break up in the Norwood Class V. Hope that clears it up for you.
Mike Beehner, M.D.

Thanks Doc. Makes perfect sense.

Dr Beehner did a nice job discussing the differences between types 5 and 6.

Before considering transplanting the front and crown it is important to assess the donor area. Although most type 5 and 6 patients are good candidates for HT not all of them can achieve complete coverage of the balding areas.

In general I recommend concentrating on the frontal one third to one half of the scalp.Once the patient is satisfied with the frontal area it may be reasonable to do work in the crown.

It is important that you consult with a hair replacement surgeon who will evaluate your situation, assess your hair characteristics and general health.The surgeon should be able to tell you if your goals for hair replacement can be reached and how to proceed