Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2010 Jan;2(1):57-62.
doi: 10.4103/0974-777X.59252.

Oral sex, oral health and orogenital infections

Affiliations

Oral sex, oral health and orogenital infections

Rajiv Saini et al. J Glob Infect Dis. 2010 Jan.

Abstract

Oral sex is commonly practiced by sexually active male-female and same-gender couples of various ages, including adolescents. The various type of oral sex practices are fellatio, cunnilingus and analingus. Oral sex is infrequently examined in research on adolescents; oral sex can transmit oral, respiratory, and genital pathogens. Oral health has a direct impact on the transmission of infection; a cut in your mouth, bleeding gums, lip sores or broken skin increases chances of infection. Although oral sex is considered a low risk activity, it is important to use protection and safer sex precautions. There are various methods of preventing infection during oral sex such as physical barriers, health and medical issues, ethical issues and oral hygiene and dental issues. The lesions or unhealthy periodontal status of oral cavity accelerates the phenomenon of transmission of infections into the circulation. Thus consequences of unhealthy or painful oral cavity are significant and oral health should be given paramount importance for the practice of oral sex.

Keywords: Oral Health; Oral Sex; Orogenital.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of Interest: None declared.

References

    1. Conard LA, Blythe MJ. Sexual function, sexual abuse and sexually transmitted diseases in adolescence. Best Pract Res Clin Obstet Gynaecol. 2003;17:103–16. - PubMed
    1. Remez L. Oral sex among adolescents: Is it sex or is it abstinence? Fam Plann Perspect. 2000;32:298–304. - PubMed
    1. Schwartz IM. Sexual activity prior to coital initiation: A comparison between males and females. Arch Sex Behav. 1999;28:63–9. - PubMed
    1. Sanders SA, Reinisch JM. Would you say you “had sex” if? JAMA. 1999;281:275–7. - PubMed
    1. Newcomer SF, Udry JR. Oral sex in an adolescent population. Arch Sex Behav. 1985;14:41–6. - PubMed