The American Dental Association defines the term "evidence-based dentistry" as:
Evidence-based dentistry (EBD) is an approach to oral health care that requires the judicious integration of systematic assessments of clinically relevant scientific evidence, relating to the patient's oral and medical condition and history, with the dentist's clinical expertise and the patient's treatment needs and preferences.
The Evidence Based Dentistry (EBD) process is a structured approach to identifying and using the best information relevant to a particular clinical problem:
Question
Articulate a clear question based on your information needs
and/or the patient's clinical problem
Find
Conduct a comprehensive search for the latest relevant research,
i.e. finding the best external evidence with which to answer the question
Assess
Critically assess the evidence for its validity and usefulness
(clinical applicability)
Act
Apply the results of the appraisal or evidence, in clinical practice
Evaluate
Assess the process and examining outcomes
A well formed clinical question covers the following 4 areas identified by the acronym PICO.