The early phases of anxiety disorders: from prevention to treatment.

The 'early intervention' model has been applied with good results to the care of a range of serious medical conditions. The key rationale for this model is to guarantee early identification and treatment for the illness, thus preventing its progression to a more advanced and severe stage. It would also provide a framework for optimal treatment according to the stage of the disorders. Although in the field of psychiatry this model has mainly been implemented in nonaffective psychosis, research evidence supports its application in other mental disorders. To promote this initiative, the chapter explores the available evidence demonstrating the feasibility of adopting the key elements of the model in the care of the whole spectrum of anxiety disorders. In addition, the chapter describes the different stages that are possible to identify in the process of developing an illness, and also the phase-specific interventions that could be applied. Finally, the service repercussions of implementing an early intervention model in anxiety disorders are discussed.