Clinical questions can be categorised as either background or foreground. Determining the type of question will help you to select the best resource to consult for your answer.
Background questions ask for general knowledge about a condition, test or treatment. These types of questions typically ask who, what, where, when, how & why about things like a disorder, test, or treatment, or other aspect of healthcare. For example:
What are the clinical manifestations of menopause?
What causes migraines?
Foreground questions ask for specific knowledge to inform clinical decisions. These questions typically concern a specific patient or particular population. They tend to be more specific and complex than background questions. Quite often, foreground questions investigate comparisons, such as two drugs, or two treatments. For example:
Is Crixivan effective in slowing the rate of functional impairment in a 45 year old male patient with Lou Gehrig's Disease?
In patients with osteoarthritis of the hip, is water therapy more effective than land-based exercise in restoring range-of-motion?