How important is it for developers to thoroughly understand PDO methods before implementing them in PHP applications?

It is crucial for developers to thoroughly understand PDO methods before implementing them in PHP applications to ensure proper database interactions, prevent SQL injection attacks, and optimize performance. Without a solid understanding of PDO methods, developers may introduce security vulnerabilities or encounter unexpected behavior in their applications. 

// Example of using PDO prepared statements to prevent SQL injection
$pdo = new PDO("mysql:host=localhost;dbname=mydatabase", "username", "password");

$stmt = $pdo->prepare("SELECT * FROM users WHERE username = :username");
$stmt->bindParam(':username', $username);
$stmt->execute();

// Fetch results
$results = $stmt->fetchAll(PDO::FETCH_ASSOC);

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