Dear Reader,

Virtually none. Although HIV has been detected in very small amounts in the saliva of some HIV-positive people, there have not been documented cases of a man or woman transferring the virus from his or her mouth through the genitals of his or her partner. Without question, the greater risk of contracting HIV rests with the performer of oral sex, although many AIDS researchers and service agencies consider this low-risk as long as one's mouth is free of ulcers or open cuts. Ejaculating outside the mouth, not swallowing ejaculate, and/or reducing the frequency of these sex acts, lowers risk even more. If one receives oral sex from a partner with a cold sore or herpes, his or her chances of contracting this sexually transmitted disease are higher, as compared to HIV transmission. (Read Cold sores vs. canker sores -- oral sex risks? in Alice's Sexual Health archives for more information.)

Alice

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