The significance of antecedent trauma in skeletal scintigraphy was assessed in 503 patients, of whom 241 (46%) had prior fracture or tooth extraction. In patients with sufficiently accurate histories for site-by-site analysis, 33 of 131 fracture sites and 16 of 83 dental-procedure sites were positive scintigraphically. In general, the frequency of scan positivity diminished as the interval between trauma and scanning increased, but a significant number of patients showed prolonged uptake at fracture sites. Several patterns of uptake suggested trauma rather than metastatic disease. Knowledge of a history of trauma is often critical in bone scan interpretation.