Norwood 5 is an advanced stage of male pattern hair loss. At this stage, you can see thinning across the scalp, with your receding hairline starting to deepen towards the mid-scalp, and an expanding bald spot on the crown.
Not all men with male pattern baldness see their hair loss advance to this stage. Some men find their hair loss stops at Norwood 3 or even Norwood 2. However, if you start to see symptoms of this advanced hair loss, it can be distressing.
In this article, you’ll learn:
- What a Norwood 5 hairline looks like
- Whether Finasteride works for this stage of hair loss
- All about Norwood 5 hair transplants.
Norwood 5 hairline examples
Norwood 5 hair loss is characterised by an expanding bald spot and a receding hairline. While these don’t quite meet at this stage, they’re much closer together than at Norwood stage 4.
Woody Harrelson and a young Elton John have both displayed a Norwood 5 hairline:
As you can see, there’s still some sparse hair remaining across the scalp, but this is thinning substantially. Many men experiencing this level of hair loss opt to shave their head or get a hair transplant.
Does Finasteride work at Norwood stage 5?
Finasteride is the most commonly prescribed hair loss drug [1]. More than 69% of hair transplant surgeons say they always or often prescribe Finasteride to patients with male pattern baldness. So how effective is Finasteride for treating Norwood 5 hair loss?
Like most hair loss treatments, Finasteride is more effective the earlier you use it. So if you’re concerned about the appearance of your hair, it’s a good idea to start using it as soon as possible to help keep the remaining hair and prevent further hair loss.
However, many people still see success using Finasteride in the latter stages of the Norwood Scale. This Norwood stage 5 patient has achieved substantial hair regrowth following a course of oral Finasteride and topical Minoxidil [2]:
Studies suggest Dutasteride may be more effective than Finasteride [3] at treating hair loss. So if Finasteride doesn’t work for you, your trichologist may prescribe Dutasteride to help improve your hair loss.
Norwood 5 hair transplant surgery
If Finasteride doesn’t give you the results you want, hair transplantation could be the answer to restore lost hair. FUE and FUT transplants can work effectively even in the latter stages of hair loss, especially if it’s supplemented with Finasteride or Dutasteride.
However, severe hair loss may require a significant number of grafts, resulting in a hair transplant megasession (i.e. transplantation of more than 3,000 grafts in a single session). That means it’s important to find a hair transplant surgeon with the skill, expertise, and experience to carry out an extended transplant session.
Cost can be a good indicator of hair transplant quality — take a look at our UK hair transplant costs analysis to learn more.
Norwood 5: How many grafts do you need?
Patients at stage 5 of the Norwood scale typically need between 1,800 and 2,200 grafts along their hairline, and up to 1,500 grafts on the crown. That means you may need a 3,000 graft hair transplant or even higher.
The number of hair grafts required typically depends on each individual’s hair loss pattern. Trichologists split the scalp into six zones:
Mapping your hair loss to these zones can help you calculate how many hair grafts you’ll need.
Norwood 5 FUE hair transplants: Before and after
These before and after hair transplant patient photos demonstrate the results you can expect from a Norwood 5 hair transplant:
Grafts: 2,400
Procedure: FUE
Grafts: 3,000
Procedure: FUT
Grafts: 2,200
Procedure: FUE
Want to know more about stage 5 hair transplants at the Wimpole Clinic?
At the Wimpole Clinic, we have almost 50 years’ expertise in delivering innovative hair restoration solutions. Our range of services encompasses everything from FUE to strip surgery to crown hair transplants, and we use the latest hair transplant methods to stop and even reverse hair loss.
Our hair transplant prices start at £3,499. with us to receive a thorough hair loss evaluation and a detailed graft count quote for your Norwood 5 hair loss.
- ISHRS Practice Census 2022
- Combined treatment with oral finasteride and topical minoxidil in male androgenetic alopecia: a randomized and comparative study in Chinese patients
- A randomized, active- and placebo-controlled study of the efficacy and safety of different doses of dutasteride versus placebo and finasteride in the treatment of male subjects with androgenetic alopecia
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