Breast self-examination in nursing students in Cartagena, Colombia

Autoexamen de mama en estudiantes de enfermería de Cartagena, Colombia

Objective: To determine the adequate practice of breast self-examination among nursing students in Cartagena. Materials and methods: A descriptive study was carried out by 388 students of the Nursing program. Data were included in Excel and processed in the SPSSS version 20. Results: The mean age of the participants was 22.8 years (SD = 3.7). 75.8% (294) practice breast self-examination, of which 85% (250) practice with a monthly frequency, 17.7% (52) practice between the fourth and tenth day from the first day of Menstruation, 83% (244) palpates and observes the breasts but only 2% (6) of them have an adequate practice of breast self-examination. Conclusions: The study participants have an inadequate practice of breast self-examination, which may generate greater risks to health and reduce the possibility of early detection of breast disease.