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4. How to construct a good EBVM question?
4.5. Example (S)PICO questions
4.5 Example (S)PICO questions
You have now looked at all the elements required to construct a full (S)PICO question.
Below are structured example (S)PICO questions created around the examples from the previous section ‘How to construct a good EBVM question?’ for the five different types of clinical question.
Original question: Which diet is best to feed cats with chronic renal disease?
(S)PICO: In [cats with chronic renal disease] does [feeding a renal prescription diet] compared with [not feeding a renal prescription diet] impact on [survival time]?
Original question: Which diagnostic test is most reliable for diagnosing fascioliasis in dairy cattle?
(S)PICO: In [lactating dairy cattle] does the [milk ELISA] compared with [serum ELISA] have better [positive and negative predictive values] for [diagnosing fascioliasis]?
Original question: Does sex affect survival in flat-coated retrievers with cutaneous lymphoma?
(S)PICO: In [flat-coated retrievers with cutaneous lymphoma], does [being a male] compared with [being a female] affect [average life expectancy]?
Original question: What are the risks of inducing general anaesthesia in ferrets under different protocols?
(S)PICO: In [ferrets undergoing general anaesthesia], what is the [risk of death] under general anaesthesia induced by [triple injectable agent] compared with the [inhalational agent]?
Original question: What is the prevalence of cardiac disorders in Welsh Section A mountain ponies?
(S)PICO: In [horses], does [being a Welsh Section A mountain pony] compared with [being any other breed] increase the [prevalence of cardiac disorders]?
The (S)PICO framework can be applied to most clinical questions and is easy to use once you have learned its salient principles.