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CC BY-NC 4.0 · Arch Plast Surg 2014; 41(03): 277-284
DOI: 10.5999/aps.2014.41.3.277
Original Article

Predicting the Permanent Safe Donor Area for Hair Transplantation in Koreans with Male Pattern Baldness according to the Position of the Parietal Whorl

Jae Hyun Park
Dana Plastic Surgery Clinic, Seoul, Korea
,
Young Cheon Na
Department of Reconstructive and Plastic Surgery, Wonkwang University Hospital, Wonkwang University School of Medicine, Iksan, Korea
,
Jae Seong Moh
Dana Plastic Surgery Clinic, Seoul, Korea
,
Seung Yong Lee
Dana Plastic Surgery Clinic, Seoul, Korea
,
Seung Hyun You
Dana Plastic Surgery Clinic, Seoul, Korea
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Background The most crucial factor in hair transplantation for male pattern baldness (MPB) patients is the efficient utilization of the donor-recipient ratio. However, there is no known factor that scientifically predicts the rate of progression of alopecia or indicates a permanently safe donor area.

Methods The study considered 1,008 Korean adult males with MPB; of these, it excluded 56 males with an absence of parietal whorls (PWs). The authors investigated the distance from the vertical bimeatal line (VM) to the PW, from the PW to the upper border of the helical rim (HR), and the distance from the PW to the occipital fringe (OF) in 952 subjects with a PW. Furthermore, we examined the distance from the PW to the OF considering the duration of alopecia and age in 322 subjects with vertex alopecia.

Results The distance between the VM and PW varied from 1.5 to 11 cm, with an average distance of 6.25 cm. The PW-HR distance ranged from 3.4 to 17.5 cm, and the average distance was 7.79 cm. The PW-OF distance ranged from 0.5 to 5.5 cm, and the average distance was 2.37 cm.

Conclusions For the PW, very large variations existed in the vertical direction. The position of the PW could predict the progression range of the total alopecia of the vertex. Alopecia mostly progresses within 6 cm of the PW toward the occipital side.

Keywords

Alopecia - Hair follicle - Transplant donor sites


Publication History

Received: 03 July 2013

Accepted: 06 September 2013

Article published online:
02 May 2022

© 2014. The Korean Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons. This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License, permitting unrestricted noncommercial use, distribution, and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commercial purposes. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/)

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