PICO is a format for developing a good clinical research question prior to starting one’s research. It is a mnemonic used to describe the four elements of a sound clinical foreground question. (Yale University’s Cushing/Whitney Medical Library).
The question needs to identify the patient or population we intend to study, the intervention or treatment we plan to use, the comparison of one intervention to another (if applicable) and the outcome we anticipate.
What individual or group are we interested in studying?
What is the action (intervention, treatment) we are considering taking?
To what other action (intervention, treatment) are we comparing the considered action?
What do we anticipate as an outcome?