To determine whether latent sensitivity to respiratory syncytial virus antigen(s) occurs after infection, 27 infants with acute bronchiolitis were studied and compared with 15 hospital controls. Blood was collected for whole blood challenge, and histamine release was measured by a high performance liquid chromatography technique with fluorometric detection. There was a significantly greater histamine release to respiratory syncytial virus antigen(s) in those with bronchiolitis than in controls, expressed either in amount (median 154 nmol/l compared with 104 nmol/l) or percentage release (median 20% compared with 3%). There was a significant difference between index and control groups in terms of individual histamine responses. These findings strongly suggest that infants develop latent sensitivity to respiratory syncytial virus antigen(s) during the course of acute bronchiolitis.Serial lung function tests were performed in 15 infants. All infants had abnormalities of lung function at some stage, but the small numbers of subjects precluded comparison between 'sensitised' and 'non-sensitised' infants. Further study is indicated to define the relation of latent sensitisation and subsequent bronchial hyper-responsiveness after respiratory syncytial virus infection in infants.syncytial virus antigen(s) occurs during the course of attacks of acute bronchiolitis in infancy, and whether there may be a relationship between latent sensitivity and lung function (including the responsiveness of airways to histamine) after apparent recovery from the acute illness. Patients and methods LATENT SENSITIVITYPatients Twenty seven infants with bronchiolitis (mean age 17 weeks, range 3-42) were studied during the 1987/8 winter outbreak of respiratory syncytial virus infection. Fifteen infants (mean age 13 weeks, range 1-35), in hospital for nonrespiratory illnesses, were studied as a control group. Six had been born after the end of the 1986/7 winter outbreak of respiratory syncytial virus infection and were studied before the onset of the 1987/8 outbreak.The clinical details and course of the illness were carefully recorded for each index case. Nasopharyngeal aspirates were obtained so that viruses could be identified by indirect immunofluorescence and tissue culture. During venepuncture for routine clinical investigations an additional 2 ml venous blood was obtained for 'challenge' studies.