Alcohol and sexual behaviour.

Alcohol, the oldest drug known to the human race, is widely perceived to affect sexual behaviour. The general public, scientific, medical and judicial establishments share and express interest in the potential effects of alcohol on the sexual behaviour of individuals. The understanding of the current state of medical knowledge, regarding the effect of alcohol on sexual behaviour, is of particular interest for the development of sexually transmitted diseases control strategies, and may be called upon for investigating alleged assault and rape. The perceived effects are influenced by historical, mythological, cultural, religious, physiological, pharmacological, expectancy, personal and legislative factors. The potential effects are investigated through surveys, global/situational association studies and placebo-controlled experiments. This article provides a review of literature and a summary of the current state of knowledge regarding the correlation between alcohol and sexual behaviour.