Knowledge and practices in sexual health of the students of the University of Antioquia, Medellín, Colombia, 2014

Abstract

Introduction: Sexuality is inherent to humanity; its experience is part of   daily  life  and  has  effects  on  sexual  health.  Sexual  education  takes  place  through  the  several  stages  of   life, including university life. Objective: to determine the level of  knowledge and practices in terms of  sex-ual  health  of   undergraduate  students  at  Universidad  de Antioquia.

Results: High frequency of  risky practices were found: 79.8% did  not  use  or  irregularly  resorted  to  the  condom,  52.5% did not use a condom at last intercourse, 23.6% claimed  sexual  relationships  with  people  other  than  the  couple,  and  21.8%  had  more  than  three  couples  during the past year; with marked gender difference. In the assessment, acceptable and deficient levels were the most common ones, higher in men, students com-ing from other regions and students enrolled in social sciences,  engineering,  and  natural  sciences  academic  programs, and adolescent students.

Conclusions: KeywordsThis study found high frequency of  risky practices for sexual health and poor knowledge of  the topic. The differences  found  in  risky  behavior  among  men  and  women are highlighted, as well as in terms of  the level of   knowledge  students  have  on  sexual  health;  situa-tions to be considered in the reorientation of  sexual education programs.