Bone Repair Stage 1: Reactive Phase Inflammation (up to ~2-3 weeks) Bleeding from the fractured bone and surrounding tissue causes the fractured area to swell. Stage 2: Soft callus (from ~2-3 weeks post-injury to ~4-8 weeks post injury) At this point, the pain and swelling will decrease. The site of the fracture will stiffen, with new bone forming. The new bone is weaker and incomplete and therefore cannot be seen on x-rays. Stage 3: Hard callus (from ~4-8 weeks post-injury t