Between January and July 2025, a total of 2,382 people were infected with the disease, a figure that is similar to 2024. The total figure for the year is also expected to end up at the same level as both 2023 and 2024, at just over 4,000 infected.
On the other hand, if we look back ten years, there is a clear increase, in 2015 we had around 1,500 and 1,600 cases, so it is an increasing trend without a doubt, says Magnus Gisslén, who is also a professor of infectious diseases at the Sahlgrenska Academy.
However, it is difficult to put your finger on the cause of the increase, during the same period that gonorrhea has increased, chlamydia, which is infected in the same way, has decreased.
There are some things that can contribute, it's about how many people get tested, that there are now, for example, more places where you can get tested for both chlamydia and gonorrhea, which may have contributed a little. But it's not the whole explanation.
Although the national statistics so far this year are stable compared to last year, several regions have warned that they are seeing an increased number of cases. This type of local increase is, however, common and varies from region to region every year, says Gisslén.
If you look at who has sex with whom and in several stages, it can become many people in a sexual network. Sexual transmission is a very effective way for an infection to spread. And if it enters such a group, many people become infected during a period in a geographical area, says Magnus Gisslén.
Gonorrhea is an infection caused by a bacterium. The infection can be transmitted through vaginal intercourse, anal intercourse, or through oral sex.
The most common symptoms are that it burns when you urinate, discharge, intermenstrual bleeding, or pain. But in several cases, gonorrhea is asymptomatic. The best protection against gonorrhea is a condom.
Source: 1177
