I have looked at hundreds of pictures now and am a little confused. You see a pic where you can someone's head rught to the back and they have say 2000 grafts then you see a pic with someone with a good bit of receding hairline and it says 4000 grafts. What determines the number needed ?

cottonnc,

It all about the size of the area you need covered - smaller head or area equals less grafts

Other important factors also come into play:

Hair diameter - thicker hair will give better coverage with less grafts

Contrast - the less color difference between the scalp and your hair will give a better illusion of density

Curly hair - this will also help with illusion of density

As a rough exercise to give you an idea of what you might need:
Use a soft tape measure and measure the area you want covered in cm
50cm area x 60 graft per cm = 3000 grafts +/- depending on the other factors and if there is existing hair

Most importantly consult with a few top Drs to get an exact amount

PJ

Cottonhc

Confusing is'nt it!!

As PJ said a lot of factors involved, but also you must decide on density v's coverage!!

If you are lucky and have a small area of loss, then for a relatively low graft count , i.e 2000 grafts you can "Dense pack" the area. If however like me you have a relatively sparse donor and a large area of loss, then you must , with the guidance of your surgeon, decide what area to cover and how dense you can go. Dr Feller got 2700 from my strip, and instead of sprinkling all over, dense packed a smaller area.

So the bottom line is large area less density, obviously dependant on your donor supply.

All the best.

Clive.