Diseases that can be transmitted through oral sex

The article was consulted with MSc, Dr. Trinh Thi Thanh Huyen - Obstetrician and Gynecologist - Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology - Vinmec Hai Phong International General Hospital.

Oral sex is using the mouth, lips, or tongue to stimulate a partner (action on the genital area, genitals, or anus). Anyone who has oral sex with someone who has an STI is at risk of contracting the disease.
Diseases transmitted through oral sex

Symptoms: When you have Gonorrhea, you don't always show any outward signs. Common symptoms are:
Burning sensation when urinating Sore throat Unusual discharge from vagina, penis, or rectum - anus Swelling and pain in testes Rectal pain Transmission route: Gonorrhea can be transmitted transmitted through oral sex with someone who has gonorrhea in the throat, vagina, penis, urinary tract, or rectum-anus.
Diagnosis and treatment: The doctor will do a urine test to diagnose the disease. In addition, samples can also be taken from:
Throat Rectal Urethra in men Cervix in women Gonorrhea can be cured with antibiotics, but now drug-resistant gonorrhea has appeared.
If there are still symptoms after treatment, the patient needs to be examined again.
Complications: If gonorrhea is not treated properly, complications can occur including:
Increased risk of HIV infection Infertility in women Epididymitis in men

Chlamydia is a common bacterial infection caused by Chlamydia trachomatis.
Symptoms:
Often when infected with chlamydia, the patient does not show any symptoms.
However, if you have chlamydia in your throat, you may have a sore throat.
If you have chlamydia in other parts such as the rectum - anus, genitals or urinary tract, the possible signs are:
Abnormal discharge, such as blood, from the vagina, penis, or rectum - anus Burning sensation when urinating Rectal pain Swelling pain testicles Transmission: Chlamydia can be transmitted from an infected person (chlamydia in throat, vagina, penis, rectum - anal) to a healthy person through oral sex.
Diagnosis and treatment:
Your doctor will test for chlamydia from a urine or vaginal discharge sample (for women).
Chlamydia can be cured with antibiotics. During treatment, the patient should abstain from sexual intercourse until completely cured.
Complications: Chlamydia can be completely cured with antibiotics, so it is important to treat it as soon as possible to limit the risk of infecting your partner.
Without treatment, the risks faced include:
Infertility in women Epididymitis in men Increased risk of HIV transmission Passing the infection on to the baby (if the mother has chlamydia during pregnancy)

Syphilis is an infection caused by the spirochete Treponema pallidum.
Symptoms: The early symptoms of syphilis are often mild and easy to miss. Syphilis goes through four stages, each with its own distinct symptoms.
Syphilis stage 1:
The characteristic sign of this stage is a syphilis chancre (at the site of infection with syphilis spirochetes): a shallow, round or oval erosion, without a raised, colored bump. The flesh is bright red and has a hard background, which may be painless. Canker sores can last from 3 to 6 weeks and then disappear on their own, but that doesn't mean it's cured. Patients need to be examined and treated by a doctor to truly recover from the disease. Stage 2 syphilis: Symptoms of this stage include:
Spread of the body Swollen lymph nodes Fever Sore throat, genitals or anus Red-brown dots in palms, soles Sore throat Hair loss Headache Weight loss Muscle pain Fatigue Symptoms may go away on their own, but the patient still needs to be treated to completely recover from the disease, to prevent the disease from progressing to the next stage.
Stage 3 syphilis:
This stage of the disease has no symptoms, and goes on for many years. Stage 4 syphilis is very rare today, because after the first infection with syphilis without treatment, it takes 10-30 years for the disease to progress to stage 4.
When suffering from stage 4 syphilis, the patient will face complicated complications such as:
Organ damage, vision loss, neurosyphilis occurs when the disease spreads to the brain and nervous system. Symptoms of neurosyphilis include:
Headache Difficulty moving the body Loss of sensation Dementia If left untreated, stage 4 syphilis can be life-threatening
Route of transmission
Important Does the oral system have syphilis? The answer is yes, syphilis can be transmitted through oral sex with an infected person, especially when there is direct contact with syphilis or scarlet fever.
Diagnosis and treatment:
The doctor will conduct a blood test to see if the patient has syphilis. If the patient has a chancre, the doctor will test the discharge from the chancre.
Jiang brought treatment as soon as possible. Injectable penicillin is a drug used to treat syphilis.
Complications:
Syphilis causes many complications, even death if left untreated. If left untreated, the patient will face:
Miscarriage, stillbirth (if pregnant) Increased risk of HIV infection Organ damage Blindness Transmit syphilis to baby (if mother gets the disease while pregnant) pregnant)

Human papillomavirus (HPV) is a very common sexually transmitted disease.
Symptoms: People infected with HPV may not have any outward symptoms. Some possible symptoms are:
Warts in the genital or anal area Warts in the oral cavity, throat If there are warts in the oral cavity, the patient may feel short of breath or difficult to speak. Route of transmission:
People with HPV in the genital area, anus, rectum, mouth, throat can spread to healthy people through oral sex.
Diagnosis and treatment:
There is no specific test to detect HPV, especially oral HPV. Some cases are found to be infected with HPV through the results of a Pap smear. Others find out when they find themselves developing genital warts or other symptoms.
Genital warts are treatable, but there is no way to eliminate HPV from the body. Warts may go away on their own or be removed with medication or surgery.
Complications:
HPV can go away on its own without treatment.
Even with treatment for genital warts, HPV cannot be eliminated, so patients can still transmit HPV to others.
Some types of HPV are the cause of cervical cancer. Vaccination against HPV can help prevent infection as well as prevent the consequences caused by HPV.

Herpes is an infectious disease caused by the herpes simplex virus.
Symptoms: When you have herpes, there are usually no outward symptoms, or if there are, it is very mild. The first symptoms usually appear after infection include:
Painful itching, sores around the genital area, rectum or mouth Headache Fever Fever Body pain Painful lymph nodes Transmission route:
People infected with herpes in the mouth, area Genital, rectal, and anal areas can be passed on to a healthy person through oral sex.
Diagnosis and treatment:
The doctor will test a swab taken from the ulcer, or conduct a blood test.
Although there is no cure for herpes, patients can still use antiviral drugs to relieve symptoms.
Complications:
With or without treatment, the patient can still transmit the disease to their sexual partners. However, taking a daily pill can help reduce the risk of infection.
Herpes infection increases the risk of HIV infection. A pregnant woman infected with herpes can pass it on to her baby.

Trichomoniasis, commonly referred to as trich, is a common bacterial infection caused by a parasite.
Symptoms: Possible symptoms are:
Unusual discharge from the vagina or penis. Redness, pain, itching around the vagina Burning sensation when urinating. Transmission:
People with trichomoniasis in the vagina or penis will infect the healthy person through oral sex, the infected person will trichomoniasis in the pharynx.
Diagnosis and treatment:
Doctors will conduct tests to diagnose a patient with trichomoniasis.
Trichomoniasis can be completely cured with a single dose of antibiotics. To avoid reinfection, don't forget to treat your sexual partners as well.
Complications
Trichomoniasis is very simple to treat, so there are no special consequences.

Hepatitis A virus can cause acute hepatitis.
Symptoms: Symptoms of Hepatitis A usually appear about 28 days after exposure to the virus and include:
Fever Fatigue Nausea, vomiting Loss of appetite Jaundice, yellow eyes Dark urine Discomfort or pain The main route of transmission of hepatitis A virus is the fecal-oral route, so when having oral-anal sex with an infected person, it is easy to get the disease.
Diagnosis and treatment
Blood tests will help detect the disease.
There is no specific treatment for hepatitis A virus, patients only need to rest for 1 - 4 weeks and avoid sex with others.
Complications
Hepatitis A virus makes the patient extremely tired, but usually does not cause any complications.

Hepatitis B virus is also a virus that causes hepatitis.
Symptoms: Hepatitis B often has few or no symptoms. Some common symptoms are:
Rash Pain stiffness in the joints Fever Fatigue Nausea, vomiting Anorexia Jaundice, yellow eyes Dark urine Pain or discomfort in the abdomen Route of transmission
Hepatitis B virus infected person can Transmitted to a healthy person through semen or vaginal secretions during oral sex.
Diagnosis and treatment
Hepatitis B virus can be identified through blood tests. The time from exposure to the virus to when the virus appears in the blood ranges from 3 weeks to 2 months. The test can also identify a person with acute or chronic hepatitis B virus infection.
There is no specific treatment for hepatitis B virus. For acute hepatitis B, most patients recover completely after a period of time. With chronic hepatitis B virus, doctors will prescribe drugs to slow down the development of the virus as well as support the immune system.
Complications
Hepatitis B virus can progress to chronic, potentially leading to cirrhosis, liver cancer, life-threatening. Vaccination is a method to help prevent disease.

HIV is a virus that causes human immunodeficiency.
Symptoms: Early HIV infection may not show any symptoms. Patients need to be tested to determine if they have HIV.
Symptoms of HIV change according to the stage of the disease. In the early stages, the patient may have flu-like symptoms:
Fever Muscle pain Sore throat Chills Fatigue Swollen lymph nodes Night sweats Transmission
Risk of HIV transmission from infected person to healthy person through sex Oral sex is quite low, and the person performing oral sex must have a wound in the mouth to be susceptible to infection.
With the right treatment regimen, people with HIV cannot transmit the disease to others.
Diagnosis and treatment:
A blood test will accurately determine whether you have HIV or not.
To completely cure HIV, so far there is no method. However, treating HIV patients according to the right regimen will stop the growth of the virus and prevent transmission.
Complications:
People with HIV need to adhere to the treatment regimen to bring their viral load below the detection threshold, in order to have a long, healthy life and prevent transmission to others.

To prevent sexually transmitted diseases during oral sex, the following measures should be taken:
Use condoms every time you have sex Use a mouthguard (if available) Be faithful to one partner not suffering from sexually transmitted diseases Periodic health check-up Packages of social diseases examination and screening of Vinmec International General Hospital help customers to screen for social diseases in order to detect diseases early to effective treatment and avoid complications.
Package of screening for social diseases for all ages, for both men and women. When registering for the Social Disease Screening Package, customers will receive:
Dermatology Specialist Tests Perform tests such as: HIV Ab rapid test, Chlamydia rapid test, Treponema pallidium rapid test, rapid test. Qualitative and quantitative Treponema pallidum TPHA assay, bacteriological staining and endoscopic staining of fungi

References: Medicalnewstoday and NHS.uk