Yeah — I had the same experience.

I think that free, city-specialty-std clinics, or health clinics focusing on GLBT populations, are the best way to go on this one.

That is a super useful tool to look at. It’s very true, it’s highly unlikely that you will contract HIV orally, but yes, I do want folks to consider the other STIs we are often less aware of/less focused on. But as Cyd is rightly pointing out, we should know our full risk so we can assess what risks we want (or don’t want) to take.

I don’t want to speak for Sarah but I think her point was that brushing and flossing makes you more likely contract all STIs that might be passed orally, not necessarily HIV.

Krissy, thank you in particular for sharing your knowledge from Magenta. My point of view on the practice of throat swabbing is very United States-centric, so I really appreciate you sharing best practices from Western Australia, known for its healthy sex trade and strong relationships between medical providers and sex workers.

Current research states that individuals with have had 6 or more sexual partners are 9 times more likely to get oral cancer than those that have not had sex at all. What is confusing is that most people that get HPV-linked oral cancer got the infection 10 to 30 years before they got the cancer. I should note that while most people think men get oral HPV from performing oral sex on women, there is no research clearly showing how the virus gets in the mouth (some suggest it could be spread via kissing even) or how effective barriers are in preventing the introduction of the HPV virus into the mouth

Even though the HPV virus is linked to oral cancer, do not get snookered into paying for a test for oral HPV. There is no treatment for oral HPV and unlike cervical cancer there is little a doctor can do to treat the virus or prevent a lesion from developing years down the road. So knowing that you have the virus in your mouth does little good.

What you want to do instead is have regular dental checkups and keep your mouth as healthy as possible. When you have your checkup also make sure that you have your dentist during a normal semi-annual exam do an oral cancer exam when he does his examination. It is a painless visual exam that will ensure an earlier diagnosis. It is most important for people from their mid 30’s onward and is important for smokers and non-smokers alike.

Here are some other thoughts on good oral health for sexually active adults
1) Mouthwashes – Alcohol based mouthwashes dry out the mouth and remove protections provided by normal saliva. There are lots of alternatives without alcohol and those with fluoride also help improve teeth strength but use the fluoride one’s no more than once a day to avoid tooth discoloration. An alternative to mouthwashes that is good for oral health and rather cheap is salt water. A saline solution is conducive to healing and can improve breath as well by flushing food an other particles where odoriferous bacteria might congregate

2) Electric toothbrushes – this may sound silly but electric toothbrushes like those made by Oral-B and Phillips improve gums and teeth because they result in longer brushing times while making the brushing less abrasive. I am a fan of the the Soniccare Essential Line.

3) Floss at the end of the day – while flossing before sex may not be a good idea. Not flossing at all is not good either. The goal is to have healthy gums which create a lower risk of infection and flossing makes a difference. Just do it when your mouth has time to recover. Also to the extent that flossing irritates your mouth, following flossing with a saline rinse will help promote healing.

4) Avoid smoking – Smoking is an oral irritant. So smoking makes it tougher to maintain good oral health. I know of no research linking smoking to STD’s but there is indication that smoking is linked to oral cancer including HPV-linked oral cancer. More importantly smokers with oral cancer usually get a tumor that is tougher to treat and has a lower survivor rate than HPV-linked cancer.

If anyone has any questions about HPV and oral cancer check out the Oral Cancer Foundation or Head and Neck Cancer Alliance websites.

I hope this helps add to the

I hope lots of folks read the mouthwash thing. So many hos I know go crazy on the Listerine before, after, and even during sessions.