Can kidney stones cause damage to your kidneys?

If obstructive: Kidney stones can cause renal damage based on obstruction. A small stone residing in the kidney does not injure the kidney. But, if the stone enlarges and blocks the kidney, it can lead to the loss of nephrons.

Yes: if you ignore and neglect to take care of the problem

It depends: Kidney stones by themselves do not cause damage to your kidneys if they are nonobstructing. If they are causing obstruction, ie stuck in the ureter, this can lead to hydronephrosis (pressure), or pyelonephritis( an infection of the kidney), (or pyonephrosis if both are present) and this can lead to kidney damage and renal failure. So the key question is are the stones obstructing or non obstructin