This week, a reader asks whether he’s at risk of sexual infection after a non-consensual oral sex act. He’s concerned that he might have a sexually transmitted infection.
Dear TGUK
A man recently put their mouth on my penis for a few seconds before I told them to get off. It was not exactly consensual. I have a boyfriend and I am very worried the guy could have passed on an STI to me.
Are the chances of doing so very low seeing as it was only a second or two and it was receptive? Thanks
Thanks
Steve
Dear Steve,
Firstly, let me say how sorry I am to hear that this has happened to you. What the guy did was sexual assault and that shouldn’t be brushed aside. If you didn’t want it to happen, it shouldn’t have. All too often we shrug off behaviour like this and it really isn’t acceptable. There are great tips on the gov.uk website to help with dealing with sexual assault.
However, you might be relieved to hear that catching an STI from this brief encounter is low-risk, especially for HIV. However, there are other infections you might want to look out for such as Chlamydia and Gonorrhoea, which can both be passed on by the giver and receiver of oral sex regardless of how long it went on for. Both of those infections can be symptomless, to begin with, so it’s important to get yourself checked out as soon as possible.
If you are worried you should make an appointment to go to a clinic, or just pop along to a walk-in clinic. There are some amazing services – and now, there are even sexual health tests that you can buy online.
According to the specialists at 56 Dean Street, one of the UK’s busiest sexual health clinics, Visiting a sex health clinic is an important part of life. you should try and make regular visits every six months to once a year if you’re sexually active.
So don’t delay in getting a test booked in. The sooner you do, the quicker you can put your mind at rest.
