ReviewSexually transmitted infections1998
Oral sex and the transmission of viral STIs.
Review in Sexually transmitted infections, 1998. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 55 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled 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.
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.
Who cites it
55 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 238 citations in OpenAlex.
- Systematic review of orogenital HIV-1 transmission probabilities.International journal of epidemiology · 2008Pooled it
- Polish Women's Sexual Strategies in Mate Retention: Initiating Sex, Faking Orgasms, and Performing Oral Sex in Response to Mate Value Discrepancy-Evidence from a Preregistered Study.Archives of sexual behavior · 2026Article
- The scopes, outcomes, and limitations of health trials on oral sex practices: a global scoping review.BMC public health · 2025Article
- Oral Sex May Serve as Low Mate Value Compensation Among Men: Evidence from a Pre-registered Study.Archives of sexual behavior · 2025Article
- Changes in knowledge of safe sex and sexual behaviour among male vocational high school students in Zhejiang Province, China: a 6-year cross-sectional comparison (2015-2021).Frontiers in reproductive health · 2025Article
- Prevalence of, and factors associated with oral sexual behaviours in men and women in Ibadan, Nigeria.PloS one · 2025Article
- Oral HPV Infection in Women with HPV-Positive Cervix Is Closely Related to Oral Sex.Diagnostics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Article
- Preventative interventions by dental care professionals in Africa on oral human papillomavirus, gonorrheal, chlamydial, syphilitic and trichomonas infections: A scoping review.Health science reports · 2023Article
- Prevalence of Human Papillomavirus in the Oropharynx of Healthy Individuals in an Italian Population.Journal of clinical medicine · 2022Article
- Sexual health risk indicators and their associations with caries status and gingival health of adolescents resident in sub-urban South-West Nigeria.AAS open research · 2022Article
- The Risk of HIV/STDs Infection and Transmission Among Never-Married Male Migrants in China: Is Risk Attributable to Bachelorhood or Migration?Archives of sexual behavior · 2021Article
- Socio-Demographic Characteristics and Sexual Behavioral Factors of Patients with Sexually Transmitted Infections Attending a Hospital in Southern Italy.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2021Article
- The prevalence and correlates of oral sex among low-tier female sex workers in Zhejiang province, China.PloS one · 2020Article
- Towards an Integration of PrEP into a Safe Sex Ethics Framework for Men Who Have Sex with Men.Public health ethics · 2019Article
- Heterosexual Anal and Oral Sex in Adolescents and Adults in the United States, 2011-2015.Sexually transmitted diseases · 2018Article
- Age Cohort Differences in Sexual Behaviors Among Black Men Who Have Sex With Men and Women.Journal of sex research · 2018Article
- Does Active Oral Sex Contribute to Female Infertility?The Journal of infectious diseases · 2017Article
- Article
- Prevalence of human papillomavirus in saliva of women with HPV genital lesions.Infectious agents and cancer · 2016Article
- The Impacts of Using Smartphone Dating Applications on Sexual Risk Behaviours in College Students in Hong Kong.PloS one · 2016Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
2 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveTo review the literature on the role of oral sex in the transmission of viral sexually transmitted infections (STIs).
methodA Medline search was performed using the keywords oro-genital sex, and those specific to each infection. Further references from each article identified by Medline were also included, as were relevant references from "Current contents".
conclusionsOral sex is a common sexual practice among both heterosexual and homosexual couples. The evidence suggests that HIV transmission can take place through oro-genital sex from penis to mouth and vagina to mouth. Case reports describe apparent transmission from mouth to penis although this appears less likely. The risk of oro-genital transmission of HIV is substantially less than from vaginal and anal intercourse. Receptive oro-genital sex carries a small risk of human papillomavirus infection and possibly hepatitis C, while insertive oro-genital contact is an important risk factor for acquisition of HSV 1. Oro-anal transmission can occur with hepatitis A and B. The transmission of other viruses may occur but is unproved. The relative importance of oral sex as a route for the transmission of viruses is likely to increase as other, higher risk sexual practices are avoided for fear of acquiring HIV infection.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
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.