A receding hairline can be an early sign of male pattern hair loss, but not every change at the front of the scalp is pathological. Some people develop a mature adult hairline without ongoing miniaturisation. The concerning pattern is progressive temple recession, thinning behind the hairline, or increasing contrast between frontal and occipital hairs. Trichoscopy can help distinguish true miniaturisation from normal variation. In women, marked frontal recession is less typical of female pattern hair loss and may suggest androgen excess, traction, frontal fibrosing alopecia, or another diagnosis that deserves assessment.
British Association of Dermatologists: Hair loss male pattern (androgenetic alopecia) — https://www.bad.org.uk/pils/hair-loss-male-pattern-androgenetic-alopecia; DermNet: Trichoscopy of generalised noncicatricial hair loss — https://dermnetnz.org/topics/trichoscopy-of-generalised-noncicatricial-hair-loss; Anastassakis K. Androgenetic Alopecia From A to Z, Vol. 1, Springer, 2022 — https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-76111-0
