What are the best practices for handling private variables in PHP classes to ensure proper encapsulation and inheritance?

To ensure proper encapsulation and inheritance in PHP classes when handling private variables, it is best practice to use getter and setter methods to access and modify the private variables. This allows for controlled access to the variables and helps maintain the integrity of the class. Additionally, using protected visibility for variables that need to be accessed by child classes can ensure proper inheritance. 

class MyClass {
    private $privateVariable;

    public function getPrivateVariable() {
        return $this->privateVariable;
    }

    public function setPrivateVariable($value) {
        $this->privateVariable = $value;
    }
}

class ChildClass extends MyClass {
    public function doSomething() {
        $value = $this->getPrivateVariable();
        // Do something with the private variable
    }
}

Keywords

private variables PHP classes encapsulation inheritance proper handling

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