Mistress160's Abode: Dental dams in kinky play

Mistress160 and solipsist · at 10:11 AM

At Kinkfest in Melbourne sol and I were given some ACON safe sex packs. We were delighted to see these contained a dental dam, something we'd wanted to try since reading Curvaceous Dee's definitive post on dental dams a few months ago.

We highly recommend reading Dee's post ... plus this will give you a chance to view the magical photos of Dee testing the strength of her dental dam!

So, what's a dental dam?

Dental dams (also called oral dams) are a thin square or rectangular sterile latex (or non latex) device used by oral surgeons to create a sterile field in the mouth. They are also used to protect against transmission of bacteria and viruses during rimming and cunnilingus. Here's Wiki:

"In regard to safe sex practices, dental dams are most commonly recognized for their use during cunnilingus and anilingus to protect against the transmission of sexually transmitted diseases."

Dee enlarges on this:

"Think herpes, gonorrhoea, HPV, HIV, syphilis, and any other STI you can imagine"

As Scarleteen advises:

"If we're going to have sex with other people, the most important and effective prevention of STIs are barriers (latex or polyurethane condoms, dental dams or gloves) used correctly and consistently for all and any vaginal, anal and/or oral sex, with any or all of your partners"

Terri Wilder raises an interesting question when she asks:

"despite the fact that health educators tell people to use dental dams ...or to cut a condom open to use as a barrier when performing oral sex on a woman, I wonder how many people actually use these products..."

There have actually been a few researchers in Australia working on this very question. ACON's website's page on dental dams now states:

"Australian based researchers Peta Cox and Ruth McNair have conducted studies exploring the use of dental dams in the lesbian and same sex attracted women's community.

"This research conclusively found that women in our communities did not enjoy using dental dams and that dental dams were not effective in preventing the transmission of sexually transmissible infections (STIs). The only scenario in which a dental dam has been found to be effective in preventing or reducing the transmission of an STI is in the case of herpes when there is an outbreak present.

"These findings are reiterated in the paper "The practical and symbolic purpose of dental dams in lesbian safer sex promotion" by Juliet Richters and Stevie Clayton. The Clayton and Richters paper is based on Sydney and NSW research into lesbians and same sex attracted women and their use of dental dams. It also provides some history into the adoption of dental dams by the lesbian community as an initial response to HIV. Now it is known that sex between women is very low risk in terms of HIV transmission.

"In generalist health services and sexual health clinics dental dams are not recommended to heterosexual couples for use when performing oral sex on a woman. Dental dams are used successfully in sex worker communities predominantly in anal based oral sex to prevent the spread of hepatitis"

Juliet Richters and Stevie Clayton also published in Sexual Health. Here's their abstract:

"Dental dams are distributed and promoted in some safer sex campaigns for use in oral sex. However, whether and how often dams are used for sex between Australian women remains unknown.

"We investigated the use of dental dams for sex by lesbians and other women who have sex with women, and the relationship between dam use and sexual risk for this group. In 2004, a self-completion questionnaire was distributed to women attending the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Fair Day and lesbian community venues and health services in Sydney (n = 543). Among the 330 women who had had oral sex with a woman in the previous 6 months, 9.7% had used a dental dam and 2.1% had used one 'often'. There was little evidence of dam use for prevention of sexually transmissible infections"

Another interesting quote from first Clayton and Richters paper:

"dental dams are not manufactured, registered or tested for STI prevention purposes. No studies exist on their permeability to STI pathogens, although it is likely that they are at least as impermeable as condoms, which are also made of latex but thinner."

At least:

"The mechanical effectiveness of condoms and other barrier devices is not in doubt. Latex and polyurethane in the thickness used for condoms and other barrier devices do not permit transmission of any pathogen"

And yet:

"The use of condoms for fellatio is controversial. Consistent use would prevent both partners from virtually all STDs transmitted by oral sex, but the risk is low without condoms and many sexually active persons find them distasteful, literally and functionally. There is similar antipathy to dental dams for cunnilingus or analingus, and most health experts recommend routine use of barriers for oral sex half-heartedly if at all."

Strange, isn't it? Obviously there are major pros and cons with dental dams, but as one safe sex site concludes:

"The use of a dam is up to you. Oral sex is considered to be less dangerous a practice than intercourse, and fellatio is often less dangerous than oral-anal sex. The level of protection you decide to use is your choice, but the safest sex dictates you use a dental dam at all times"

As Dee points out:

"being safe means making compromises. I feel dental dams are ideal if you’re going to play with someone whom you don’t know well, or who hasn’t been tested (or if you haven’t been tested, for that matter!). Sharing disease as well as orgasms is just not worth it."

If this is of interest you may want to track down the links in see References and Online Resources list at the bottom of this post. Meanwhile, back to sol's and my experience....

Sol and I can at least avoid the barriers / protection debate because we are fluid bonded. We don't have to use dental dams or other barriers during sex. However we thought dental dams might have D/s play potential - this "test run" was to both see how we found them from a sensitivity point of view as well as explore some other kinky possibilities.

Initially I had a problem separating dental dams from their other use. I encountered a mint flavored bright green dental dam last time I had root canal surgery at the dentist and it was so revolting it nearly put me off using dental dams for sex, for life.

OK OK I admit it, it was the dental surgery rather than the dental dam that put me off. But I did find the mint scented green latex a bit much. Luckily the dental dam in our safe sex pack was vanilla "flavored" and cream colored, so it wouldn't bring back any awful root canal memories. You can also buy flavors / scents like grape, banana and strawberry. Dee has even found cola and blueberry ones.

The dental dam in our safe sex pack came from Thailand so it had instructions in both languages:

It's easy to use. Here's Wiki again:

"After lubrication with water-based lubricant an unpunctured dental dam may be held over the vulva or anus, allowing oral stimulation of these areas without transmission of bodily fluids and skin contact."

Dee puts a bit more fun into that description (because as she points out, "it is a whole lot of fun to use a dental dam!"):

"There are a few important things to remember for extra comfort:
A little lube on the non-mouth side makes things a lot more fun for the receiver!
Marking the external side (with a wee black dot from a marker on one edge) will prevent confusion about which way up it goes if (say) a strong wind catches it.
Someone needs to hold the dental dam in place.With that last one you can have a bit of fun. Want to torment the receiver? Make them hold the edges against their thighs and try not to wriggle. Want control? Hold it yourself. In an orgy? Ask someone else to hold it! It is important, and it’s something it’s easy to miss. But once you’ve done it wrong you’ll never forget again! Why? Because if no one holds it … it gets inhaled. And choking plus laughter kills the moment quite impressively."

*grin* You can even buy a product to help you keep it in place! We knew Dee was 200% right about the lube so we fetched it:

Remember, you don't want to use oil based lubes like Vaseline, mineral / vegetable oils as they can cause the breakdown of the latex in the dental dam.

Sol unpacked the dental dam:

He's holding it up to the light to double check it's free of holes or perforations. You can also run it under a tap to see if any water comes through. I took a sniff ... vanilla was certainly better than the mint one at the dentist! Sol then lubed my private bits:

And placed the dental dam in position:

You only use a dental dam once and you only use one side, so sol made sure this was in place to give me maximum fun. We agree with Dee about the need for having the dental dam held firmly, but for this short test run sol was able to hold it in place.

Sorry those photos are shaky ... without looking I was literally waving the camera in the right direction and just clicking. And once sol set to work I have to admit my mind was on other things than the camera:

Obviously there are differences between having a barrier and not having a barrier (ask anyone giving a blowjob to a condom covered cock). Sol usually enjoys seeing what he's doing and you can't really do that with dental dams in place. As Dee notes:

"Some are more transparent than others – and pressing them against the skin gives you a pretty good idea of contours. But mostly it’s a matter of finding your way by feel (and reaction)."

And that's really what it's all about ... taking the time to explore the new medium and work out how you can work with it. The dental dam is thin and strong and stretchy so you can work it into the contours and folds of the genital area. Alex Robboy wrote:

"To increase the sensation, the licker could try to create air bubbles while sucking and snapping them back. To increase the taste for the licker, put some Nutella on the dental dam. From what I hear Nutella is supposed to spread well on anything, morning noon or night, and it tastes like chocolate. What more could a person ask for?"

Sounds fun.

And it's not that bad, in regard to loss of sensitivity. My first response was probably the same as many men trying their first condom ... if I was honest it didn't feel as bad as I'd imagined. As one safe sex site observed:

"The feeling of a dental dam is different than the feeling of a tongue but it does not necessarily make it a bad thing"

Exactly. And it is sure a fun way to keep safe. I was definitely enjoying myself, lying back and letting the lube increase my sensitivity....

The only problem was we had a time limit and it was obvious that using dental dams was going to result in a much slower, more leisurely orgasm. So sadly we removed the dam. A few minutes later I came .... and a few minutes after that I allowed sol to come. Definitely a good start to a week, a double orgasm.

Later we discussed our "test run" in terms of kinky possibilities:

think of your dental dam as Dee does: as an extra toy in your kinky toybag ... and then start thinking of it's play possibilities. Dee writes of "snapping my partner’s thigh before using them. Squirting cold lube on hot bits and squishing it around with the latex. Finding erogenous zones with my tongue and nose and chin by feel" ... mmmm...
dental dams are not a bad way to start exploring a latex / rubber fetish with your partner. Latex / rubber garments and toys are expensive and hard to store. On the other hand a small strong and very stretchy rectangle of latex can be incorporated into sex and kinky play in lots of different ways. One thing: you'll get the right texture sensations from the dental dam but you will need to track down non flavored / unscented dams to get the proper latex smell.

after you've had a few "test runs" you can work out whether dental dams limit your personal sensation play or not. If you usually come quickly during oral sex, dental dams are a great way of slowing your orgasm down and making sex last longer.

for the person performing oral sex dental dams limit view, touch (via the tongue) and taste. In terms of kinky play this means you can utilize dental dams as a form of service. I can lie back and enjoy a leisurely scene with lots of oral attention while sol is denied some of the pleasure he usually experiences when allowed to go down on me without a latex barrier. The lovely kinky paradox of this is that he then experiences pleasure at being subjected to this form of denial.

Yep, Curvaceous Dee is definitely right ... using a dental dam is "a whole lot of fun"!

WANT ONE?

They can be hard to track down real time (more chemists should stock them) but you'll find plenty online. Non latex ones can be hard to source ... thankfully Dee's research turned up Hot Dam.

If you can't find a dental dam there are ways to make a barrier:

Using a condom (also here) (remember: "use unlubricated condoms and make sure they don’t have spermicide (it tastes bad and can actually increase your risk of HIV because it irritates")

Using a latex glove (also here)

Dee did some extra homework on making her own barriers out of condoms. Her final thoughts:

"I have just performed two experiments ... using Durex latex condoms: ripping one condom into a dental dam with teeth; and cutting another condom into a dental dam with scissors. And then attacking them with some stretching and tearing. (For both I turned condom into dam as per the video linked above – removing the tip, removing the ring at the other end, splitting down the middle.)It was reasonably easy to do both ways, although I actually found it simpler with teeth. It does make an acceptable dam in a pinch, but I feel it’s not ideal.

"Condom advantages: can see better what’s on the other side; easier to source condoms.

"Condom disadvantages: makes a narrower dam; tastes much worse; slightly weaker material.It did take serious teeth grabbing to rip it in the middle (as it does with original dams), but the edges are considerably easier to rip. Holding the makeshift dam in from the edges means it’s still quite strong. It’s nearly as stretchy as the original dam, too."

Another option is using clear wraps like Glad wrap / Saran wrap. You can do this BUT you need to make sure you only use non microwaveable clear wraps. This is important. Here's Dee:

"Most clear wraps these days are designed to be microwaveable – and this means that the pores in the wrap are large enough to allow bacteria and viruses to pass through."

Juliet Richters and Stevie Clayton also discuss cling wrap in their paper The practical and symbolic purpose of dental dams in lesbian safer sex promotion:

"Cling wrap is likely to be effective simply because it is waterproof, although less robust than latex ﬁlm. Cling wrap is cheap, readily available, odourless and thinner than latex dams. If a piece tears during use it can easily be replaced. It is thus likely to be more acceptable to women for regular use than dental dams, but because of uncertainty about its possible permeability, many authorities remain reluctant to encourage its use. Laboratory evidence for the performance of cling wrap as a barrier to pathogens would be very useful"

It certainly would.

Don't forget, if you keep dental dams in stock, to store them in a dry cool place away from direct sunlight. Heat can cause the latex in dams to deteriorate, making them more likely to break.

REFERENCES AND ONLINE RESOURCES