I don't think so, I would take an older record that your not worried about getting damaged if in fact your stylus is damaged and test it on that. But I really don't think you have anything to be worried about.
You should be fine. Nearly all records end in a locked groove, meaning the record needle shouldn't drift into the dead wax, it just stays locked in the final groove. Some records (Lazaretto comes to mind) even have recorded sound on the locked groove so the sound repeats over and over again. In terms of knowing the needle you'll start getting distortion on the sound, some of the higher end audio shops may even have a stylus microscope that they can check the needle out for you if you're unsure. If you have no background whatsoever on a stylus (and especially if it looks older) I'd probably just buy a compatible new stylus before playing any record of value just to be on the safe side. Shure makes some good quality, affordable cartridges and I've had really good success with the Ortofon 2M line.
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