What is the significance of using execute() after preparing a statement in PHP PDO?

When using PHP PDO to prepare a statement for database operations, it is important to follow up with the execute() method to actually execute the prepared statement. The execute() method binds any parameters to the prepared statement and then executes it, allowing the database to process the query safely and efficiently.

// Example of preparing a statement and executing it using PHP PDO
$stmt = $pdo->prepare("SELECT * FROM users WHERE username = :username");
$stmt->bindParam(':username', $username);
$stmt->execute();