A 15-year-old boy presented with fever and chills for the last 3 days. A peripheral blood smear revealed the following. Which of the following is the most probable causative agent?
Plasmodium malariae
Plasmodium falciparum
Plasmodium ovale
Plasmodium vivax
The given clinical scenario and the peripheral smear showing the Maurer&;s dots are suggestive of malaria caused by Plasmodium falciparum. Features of Plasmodium falciparum on peripheral smear are Maurer's dots, ring form, accole form, and banana-shaped gametocytes. Reference: Paniker&;s Textbook of Medical Parasitology 8th edition
miscellaneous