Evidence map›Paper›PMID 37128302›Full record

ArticleHeliyon2023

Can oral sex be performed safely among men who have sex with men (MSM) and transgender women in Bangladesh? Challenges, complexities and the way forward.

Golam Sarwar, Mohammad Niaz Morshed Khan, Gorkey Gourab, Samira Dishti Irfan, Mahbubur Rahman, Akm Masud Rana, Sharful Islam Khan

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Heliyon, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
1.2field-weighted citation impact, top 23% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed, 6 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. International journal of transgender health · 2026
    Article
  2. Article
  3. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

Golam SarwarProgramme for HIV and AIDS, Infectious Diseases Division, International Centre for Diarrheal Disease Research, Bangladesh (icddr,b), Dhaka, Bangladesh.
Mohammad Niaz Morshed KhanProgramme for HIV and AIDS, Infectious Diseases Division, International Centre for Diarrheal Disease Research, Bangladesh (icddr,b), Dhaka, Bangladesh.
Gorkey GourabProgramme for HIV and AIDS, Infectious Diseases Division, International Centre for Diarrheal Disease Research, Bangladesh (icddr,b), Dhaka, Bangladesh.
Samira Dishti IrfanProgramme for HIV and AIDS, Infectious Diseases Division, International Centre for Diarrheal Disease Research, Bangladesh (icddr,b), Dhaka, Bangladesh.
Mahbubur RahmanProgramme for HIV and AIDS, Infectious Diseases Division, International Centre for Diarrheal Disease Research, Bangladesh (icddr,b), Dhaka, Bangladesh.
Akm Masud RanaProgramme for HIV and AIDS, Infectious Diseases Division, International Centre for Diarrheal Disease Research, Bangladesh (icddr,b), Dhaka, Bangladesh.
Sharful Islam KhanProgramme for HIV and AIDS, Infectious Diseases Division, International Centre for Diarrheal Disease Research, Bangladesh (icddr,b), Dhaka, Bangladesh.
International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research · BD

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Introduction: There is currently ample research and intervention initiatives addressing anal sex and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) among gender and sexually diverse people (i.e., men who have sex with men (MSM) and transgender women). However, oral sex and oral STIs are not prioritized to the same extent, despite their concerning implications. This article aimed to delineate the underlying contexts of unprotected oral sex and the management challenges of oral STIs. Methodology: This qualitative study constituted 30 in-depth interviews, 14 focus group discussions, and 10 key-informant interviews with gender and sexually diverse people, service providers of HIV interventions and sexuality researchers. Thematic analysis conventions were applied. Results: Findings revealed various contexts of unprotected oral sex. In particular, we found a discordance between pleasure and protected sex where participants believed the two phenomena were mutually exclusive, therefore they did not want to compromise their pleasure by using condoms. Moreover, their low awareness, risk perception, and unchallenged misconceptions about the harms of unprotected oral sex fueled their hesitancy to use condoms during oral sex. Compared to anal sex and STIs, oral sex and STIs were less prioritized in the current HIV intervention modalities, where healthcare providers lacked adequate knowledge and training about oral sex and oral STIs, as well as their complexities. Conclusions: In Bangladesh and several other settings, oral sex is considered a taboo, thus imbuing silence about this issue and its complexities. In this context, it is integral to eradicate the taboos and silence surrounding oral sex and oral STIs in order to strengthen the overall STI management strategy. Therefore, HIV/STI prevention programs and mainstream healthcare facilities need to underscore oral STI interventions, otherwise this issue would remain under-prioritized.

Indexed as

GonorrheaMSMOral sexOral STITransgender women

Identifiers

PMID37128302
PMCPMC10148115
OpenAlexW4366160548

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.