Gold standard diagnostic test for babeiosis is:

Ans: a. Peripheral blood smear ...,Microscopic examination of stained blood smear is gold standard test for babesiosis"A specific diagnosis usually is established by microscopic examination of Giemsa-stained thin blood smears. Babesia trophozoites appear round, pear-shaped, or ameboid.The ring form is most common and lacks the central brownish deposit (hemozoin) typical of Plasmodium falciparum trophozoites. Other distinguishing features are the absence of schizonts and gametocytes and the occasional presence of tetrads ("Maltese cross").If parasites cannot be identified by microscopy and the disease is still suspected, amplification of the babesial 18S rRNA gene by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is recommended. Quantitative PCR has greatly lowered the threshold for detection of B. microti DNA