Several studies have proposed that oropharyngeal gonorrhoea can be transmitted via tongue kissing (hereafter ‘kissing’) in gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men (MSM).1 2 Female sex workers (FSWs) also have a high prevalence of oropharyngeal gonorrhoea.3 4 A previous study has shown that FSWs had a median of 10 male clients in an average working week and 84% of FSWs kiss at least one client in an average working week.5 Kissing has been considered a low risk for HIV and STI transmission and hence has been neglected in research. This study aimed to examine the duration of kissing among FSWs.

We performed a cross-sectional survey between 1 May 2019 and 13 March 2020 at the Melbourne Sexual Health Centre (MSHC), Australia. Women aged 18 years or above who self-reported working as a sex worker and attending the MSHC during the study period were invited to participate in the survey via computer-assisted self-interviewing. This survey collected information on kissing practice and the duration of kissing. This study was terminated early due …