This paper presents a critical review of literature on the programs and techniques of psychological preparation for surgery in children and discusses the limits of research in this field. Surgical procedures produce high levels of anxiety in pediatric patients that can lead to some traumatic psychological disturbances. Preparing these patients can reduce anxiety, negative and inadequate behaviours in the post-operative period, and it can also be efficient to reduce the parents' anxiety. Limitations regarding the study, its importance, and need of further scientific research to better evaluate procedures and the inclusion of parents in the pre-surgical preparation are discussed.
Psychological intervention; Children surgery; Pediatric psychology