The Ultimate Guide to Cunnilingus by Violet Blue Read Free Book Online Page B

unprotected partner (for more on rimming, see the next section). Hepatitis B is very similar in transmission to HIV: it is found in blood and other body fluids, such as semen, vaginal secretions, breast milk, and tears. You contract hepatitis B when fluids from a carrier enter your body via an opening such as a cut or sore in your mouth. Cara Bruce, author of The First Year: Hepatitis C, states that “of all the hepatitis strains, you’re most at risk for hepatitis B when performing unprotected cunnilingus.” Hepatitis C is transmitted solely via direct blood contact. Bruce tells us that to contract hepatitis C during cunnilingus, the receptive partner (who has hepatitis C) must be menstruating, and the person going down on her must have a cut, sore, bite, or abrasion in their mouth. Hepatitis A is not a chronic or long-term infection; there is a vaccine to prevent hepatitis B, and it can be can be treated in some cases; however, there is no cure or vaccine for hepatitis C.
     

Herpes
     
    Herpes is an extremely contagious STD that can be spread through contact with mucous membranes—from vulva to mouth and from mouth to vulva—as well as through skin-to-skin contact, such as hand-to-vulva or hand-to-anus contact. That’s why you’ll want to use gloves with your dental dams (or saran wrap), since you’ll probably want to touch your partner’s labia, clit, vagina, and/or anus while going down on her. While it’s true that the herpes virus is benign when not active, the CDC states that it’s possible to contract herpes between eruptions, when the skin is shedding. An outbreak can range from a collection of blistering, painful sores to one small sore that can be unknowingly tucked in a fold of skin. There is no cure for herpes (science has yet to cure any virus), but there are treatments in the form of prescription drugs that can help prevent the onset of a breakout and lessen the severity and duration if one occurs.
     

HPV
     
    Human papillomavirus (HPV) is the virus associated with genital warts. However, you can have HPV and never have a genital wart; in fact, most people who have HPV do not know they have it, because it usually causes no symptoms. Approximately ten of the thirty identified strains of HPV can lead to the development of cervical cancer. Research has shown that 90 percent of cervical HPV infections become undetectable within two years; it is persistent infection from HPV that is considered a key risk factor for cervical cancer. HPV is spread much like herpes, through skin-to-skin and mucous membrane contact when the virus is shedding, whether or not the infected person has any symptoms. The symptoms of HPV can take several weeks or even months to appear, and in some cases they appear only on the cervix or vaginal tissues. HPV can be detected by a Pap smear. Again, gloves and dental dams are advised. There is no cure for HPV but there are treatments, including in-office procedures including cryotherapy (freezing) and patient-applied medications such as imiquimod cream.
     

Bacterial STDs
     
    Gonorrhea, chlamydia, and syphilis are bacterial STDs and can be treated with antibiotics. They are spread through unprotected sexual contact. Though transmission of chlamydia through cunnilingus is unlikely, the CDC tells us that gonorrhea can be spread via unprotected oral-vaginal contact, as can syphilis, if there is a sore (chancre) present on your mouth or her vagina.
     

Infections
     
    Trichomonaisis, bacterial vaginosis (BV), and vulviovaginal candidasis (yeast infections) are infections that can develop on their own through growth of harmful bacteria in the vagina, though they also can be spread through unprotected vaginal intercourse. Trichomonaisis and BV can be spread through contact with vaginal secretions—for instance, when a woman touches her partner’s vulva and then her own—but instances of contracting a yeast infection this way are rare. These infections can be treated with