Survey on Virtual Microscopy versus Light Microscopy in Histological Education among Students in Medicine and Dental Medicine

Virtual microscopy (VM) involves digitally photographing tissue sections on microscope slides and provides a physically distant opportunity for histology education.This method was particularly important during the Covid-19 pandemic.The aim of the present study was to verify the students' opinion on this innovative method and its implementation in histological education.152 UK and 50 Bulgarian students at Medical University of Plovdiv participated.We performed a survey using Google Forms test among the students.The students think that virtual microscopy will increase the understanding of the microscopic structures but cannot replace the conventional light microscopy and teacher guidance.147 of them prefer studying histological sections via both methods.Virtual microscopy represents a modern tool with increased quality and utility in microscopy education.However, the role of the teacher and the light microscopy are also very significant and using both methods will provide the most beneficial training in histology.