Whilst updating knowledge on sexual diseases recently I made an interesting observation that previously I’d thought risible.

Some diseases — like Chlamydia for example — can be spread by unprotected (no condom use) sex during genital/ genital, genital/ rectal or oral/ genital activities.

The inclusion of oral/ genital contact gave pause for thoughts:
1) Is Chlamydia transmission limited solely from the genital provider to the oral provider ?
2) If Chlamydia can be contracted orally the disease must be able to be sustained within the mouth …. So ….
3) Could Chlamydia be transmitted from the oral provider to a genital provider ?
And….
4) If so (#3 above), could Chlamydia be transmitted FROM a mouth TO another mouth … as in kissing ?
Who uses condoms to kiss ?!!

Chlamydia has been referenced as it is amongst THE most commonly contracted of sexually transmitted diseases, can be maintained in either gender, is often without any signs or symptoms, is readily treated and — if untreated — can last a lifetime and be potentially transmittable at any time. So ….:
5) Could this mean kissing a grandparent could be hazardous for an infection contracted in their youth ?
(That’s “A” grandparent — not “YOUR” grandparent: who swaps fluids with them intentionally ? )

Further thought :
6) IF untreated/ undetected disease CAN be transmitted/ contracted by oral/oral contact of deep kissing, what preventative steps can be taken ? Mouthwashes are most often high in alcohol content which is often what leads to the situation…

Humour aside, does kissing pose a problem in this regard ?
If so, why do none of the information sources readily available seem to reference it as a hazard ?
If so, what can be done about it — or what do people need to be aware of ?
………..

An auxiliary/ bonus question (sticking with Chlamydia as an example for discussional consistency/ simplicity) :
7) Does the disease migrate through the body so that a transmission site may be different to the contraction site or does contraction/ transmission only occur at the same body site ?
(This could affect the effectiveness of “at risk” partners modifying their practices.)
Kellie: “No time for all that,” is probably the main reason people are uninformed and transmissions continue. Thye link provided — whilst useful — is but a basic overview and doesn’t address the deeper issues.
Sharon: Thanks for your well articulated, in-depth documented response citing authoritave research and further information sources. You are treasure to the advancement of human knowledge.
TweetyBird: For one who purports to be a nurse with much knowledge you give little evidence of same. Your oft abrupt, ascerbic responses must be wonderful for bedside manner.
Old School: I much appreciate your application, committment, information and reasoning. However the basic questions remain definitively unaddressed.
All: This question was posed as kissing along with “I must have caught it off a public bus/ toilet seat” have long been accepted as mythological/ implausible excuses for disease/ pregnancy contraction. Yet perhaps kissing has credibility ?

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This entry was posted on Sunday, February 28th, 2010 at 1:45 am and is filed under Chlamydia Q&A. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.