Stress is an important factor in fracture healing, but it is not the only one. The exact amount of stress, displacement or strain needed or tolerated in fracture healing is not yet clear. There are numerous modifying factors influencing fracture healing like fracture type, soft tissue injury, vitality of fragments, type of osteosynthesis, soft tissue handling, localization of injury, activity level and weight of the patient, local geometry and muscular topography. However, despite our large deficits in knowledge of the process of fracture healing, typical patterns of failure or disturbed healing can be recognized. This could help bringing stress and fracture healing in balance and includes an analysis of pathological stress and our efforts to neutralize, canalize or use it to our advantage.