This paper reviews the ways in which traumatised teeth may become discoloured. The literature was searched using the PubMed database with the following terms: dental trauma, tooth discolouration, pulp necrosis, tooth staining. The search was limited to articles in the English language. A manual search using references from this source followed. Although all abstracts were read in full, this is not intended as a systematic review. Little has been written in endodontic texts; much has been said about bleaching and other means of treating discoloured teeth, which is beyond the scope of this paper. Keywords: calcific metamorphosis, pulp haemorrhage, pulp necrosis, resorption, tooth staining