Abstract
For many years, the teaching of morphology medical education relied on light microscopy. However, the development of virtual technology has led to the development of digital pathology. Evaluating the academic performance of students studying morphology using virtual and light microscopy to determine the promising trajectory of learning in medical education. In the last 5 years, the dominant trend in higher medical education has been the active implementation of virtual microscopy in morphological teaching. This reviewaims to analyse the use of virtual or light microscopy in teaching morphology in medical school countries.Methods. According to the search strategy of the databases: Google Scholar, PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, Mendeley, CINAHL, Embase, and Cochrane Library, open access articles with a depth of the last 5 years were studied. Inclusion criteria: publications of the level of evidence A and B including meta-analyses, systematic reviews, original cohort, and cross-sectional studies. Exclusion criteria: expert opinions, promotional articles, cases of pathology diagnosed in patients, and articles with uncertain qualitative or quantitative data. Conclusions. Overall, the results showed a preference for this technology and higher academic grades in the learners. The cumulative effect size of all studies strongly argues for the higher academic performance of students when they use virtual microscopy for learning. The literature review and objective evaluation of morphology learning outcomes in today's world emphasizes that despite some difficulties in implementing virtual microscopy as a tool in medical education, there are more advantages than disadvantages in preparing future physicians with high levels of competence. Keywords:light microscopy, virtual microscopy, morphology, higher medical education, digital pathology, learning outcomes, learning effectiveness.