Scalp Reduction

In the 1982 document, Martin L. Bell, M.D., described scalp reduction as a method to treat male pattern baldness by removing bald scalp areas and stretching adjacent hair-bearing scalp over the excised area. The procedure could require one to four stages and was dependent on scalp flexibility, with 10% of patients being unsuitable. Bell had performed 53 scalp reduction procedures on 30 patients by April 1981, and later 85 procedures on 56 male patients, with most patients satisfied and complications being rare. The technique was noted to potentially reduce the resources needed for hair restoration by about one-third and suggested a new role for plastic surgeons in treating male pattern baldness.