Same day or urgent care:
- You cannot bear weight on the affected limb.
- The joint feels unstable, gives way, or looks visibly out of place.
- You have new numbness, tingling, or loss of sensation.
- Significant swelling appeared within an hour of injury.
- You heard or felt a "pop" at the moment of injury.
- You have a fever along with joint pain.
- The pain is severe enough to wake you from sleep.
- The injury followed a high-energy mechanism (car crash, fall from height).
Within 1–2 weeks:
- Pain has not improved after 5–7 days of reduced activity.
- You are modifying how you play, or you have stopped playing entirely.
- The pattern is getting worse, not better.
- You have a specific mechanical trigger (a particular motion always reproduces the pain).
- The pain is interfering with sleep, school, or daily activities.
Eventually, even if it is mild:
- Symptoms have been around for more than a month, even if they are mild and stable.
- Anything that worries you, your parent, or your coach.
If you do not have a sports medicine doctor, the AMSSM (American Medical Society for Sports Medicine) maintains a public Find-a-Doctor directory at amssm.org. An athletic trainer at your school is also an excellent first point of contact and can usually help you decide whether you need a physician next.