Rapid Weight Gain Following Ceftriaxone Treatment in a Severely Malnourished Infant With Infection

Severe acute malnutrition (SAM) is a leading cause of child mortality, particularly in low- and middle-income regions such as Nusa Tenggara Timur (NTT), Indonesia, where prevalence and poverty rates remain high. SAM weakens the immune system and increases vulnerability to infections such as pneumonia and sepsis, forming a vicious cycle between malnutrition and disease. Effective management requires early identification and integrated treatment strategies addressing both nutritional and infectious components. This case report presents a severely malnourished infant from a rural area of NTT who developed bronchopneumonia and sepsis but exhibited unexpected early weight gain following a five-day course of ceftriaxone. The rapid clinical improvement suggests a possible role of short-term antibiotic therapy not only in controlling infection but also in enhancing early nutritional recovery. Few cases in the literature have documented such substantial early weight gain in a severely malnourished infant following antibiotic treatment alone. This observation offers a novel clinical insight into the potential metabolic benefits of infection control during the acute phase of SAM and highlights the need for further research into the broader impact of antimicrobial therapy on nutritional outcomes.