How can PHP developers effectively handle empty result sets from database queries to prevent errors and ensure smooth execution of code?

When handling empty result sets from database queries in PHP, developers can use conditional statements to check if there are any rows returned before attempting to fetch data. By checking for empty result sets, developers can prevent errors such as trying to access non-existent data and ensure the smooth execution of code.

// Perform a database query
$query = "SELECT * FROM table WHERE condition";
$result = mysqli_query($connection, $query);

// Check if there are any rows returned
if(mysqli_num_rows($result) > 0) {
    // Fetch data from the result set
    while($row = mysqli_fetch_assoc($result)) {
        // Process the data
    }
} else {
    // Handle empty result set
    echo "No results found.";
}