[Psychiatric interventions in children under five years of age: prevention or care?].

We analysed the consultations of children under the age of 5 attending our pedopsychiatric outpatients department over a period of 1 year. Although paediatricians and pedopsychiatrists agree on the necessity to start therapy as early as possible, we found that many children were seen to late, at a time when they had difficulties, and that the principle of early intervention in pedopsychiatric needs to be better applied during infancy in an effort to prevent psychological disturbances.