.... my $sth = $dbh->prepare_cached(...) || die ...; $sth->execute(@some_values) || die ...; $sth->bind_columns(\my ($foo, $bar, $baz)); while ($sth->fetch) { # Use $foo, $bar, and $baz here. } $sth->finish; ###### Used to be: ... my ($foo, $bar, $baz); $sth->bind_columns(\($foo, $bar, $baz)); ...