Overview
Male pattern baldness is a sex-linked characteristic that is passed from mother to child. A man can more accurately predict his chances of developing male pattern baldness by observing his mother's father than by looking at his own father.
Review Date 5/2/2017
Updated by: David L. Swanson, MD, Vice Chair of Medical Dermatology, Associate Professor of Dermatology, Mayo Medical School, Scottsdale, AZ. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, Brenda Conaway, Editorial Director, and the A.D.A.M. Editorial team.