Fecal-oral route

Many diseases can be passed when fecal particles from one host are introduced into the mouth of another potential host. This is referred to as the fecal-oral route (or alternatively, the oral-fecal route or orofecal route).

There are, usually, intermediate steps, sometimes many of them. Amongst the more common causes are: Water that has come in contact with feces and poorly treated before drinking; food that has been handled with feces present; poor sewage treatment; poor or absent cleaning after handling feces or anything that has been in contact with feces.

Some sexual practice — such as anal-oral sex, coprophilia — can also spread disease by the fecal-oral route.

Some diseases that can be passed via the fecal-oral route:
 * Giardiasis
 * Hepatitis A
 * Hepatitis E
 * Shigellosis (bacillary dysentery)
 * Typhoid fever
 * Vibrio parahaemolyticus infections
 * Polio
 * Cholera