How risky is oral sex?
For many years it has been known that unprotected oral sex carries a risk, albeit relatively small, of HIV transmission. Recent work in the USA and in the UK has suggested that this risk may contribute to 3-8% of HIV infections among men who have sex with men. We also know that other sexually transmitted infections (STIs), such as syphilis, can be transmitted through oral sex more readily than HIV; for example, in a recent outbreak of syphilis in gay men in northwest England, oral sex was a significant mode of transmission. Unlike HIV, syphilis can be cured if diagnosed and treated early, but it can have serious consequences if left untreated, so it is better to prevent it than to have to treat it. Oral sex is also known to transmit STIs like gonorrhoea and herpes simplex.
