A man who developed swine flu without travelling to Mexico believes he could have caught it during a business meeting in the county.

Health Protection Agency experts said there were still no confirmed cases in the East Midlands on Monday.

Barry Greatorex (43), from Gloucestershire, believes he caught swine flu at a business meeting in Castle Donington 12 days ago.

He is said to be recovering well at his home.

Mr Greatorex said he attended the meeting with a woman who had returned from Mexico. She is being retested for the virus.

Health teams in Leicestershire remain on full alert after the World Health Organisation upgraded the Swine Flu alert to Stage 5.

Useful links:

An information leaflet is being distributed to all households next week. This can be viewed online by clicking here.

Keep abreast of developments through the Government's health website
www.direct.gov.uk/swineflu.

Further information for the public is available on www.nhs.uk, with further scientific information available on the Health Protection Agency website www.hpa.org.uk .

In a joint statement today (Thursday), the NHS in Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland explained Stage 5 means there is human-to-human spread of the virus in at least two countries in one WHO region.

In Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland, the situation remains unchanged - health teams are on full alert and monitoring the situation minute by minute.

As of today, there are no confirmed cases in the East Midlands. Any confirmed cases will be announced nationally by ministers and the Health Protection Agency.

The Department of Health has launched a national flu information line for members of the public, which contains pre-recorded information on 0800 1513 513.

Anyone who has recently travelled to the affected areas, Mexico, Texas, New York and California, and is experiencing influenza like illness should stay at home to limit contact with others, and seek medical advice by telephone from a local health professional or by contacting NHS Direct on 0845 46 47.

Speaking on behalf of the NHS in Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland, Dr Peter Marks, NHS Leicestershire County and Rutland director of public health, said: "Although the WHO has upgraded the alert, basically the situation remains the same locally. We are prepared and ready for any change in the situation.

"All our plans are in place, we are maintaining a constant monitoring of the situation, and our teams are meeting regularly to ensure we can swing into action if necessary.

"We are now working through these plans, such as our methods to ensure people can get access to antiviral medicines, should that be necessary.

"We are also communicating closely with clinical teams to make sure that we will be able to maintain vital health services if infection does become widespread in Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland."

But he wants the public to also maintain their level of vigilance and maintain high level of hygiene to protect themselves from the spread of germs.

The NHS in Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland is working alongside all public authorities to respond to the current developments regarding swine flu. All local organisations have been working on detailed plans for these circumstances for a number of years.

"We have plans in place to make sure that if the current situation does result in more widespread infection, that we will be able to treat people effectively. We are also getting daily advice from colleagues from the Health Protection Agency" he said.

"I would like to reassure people that at the moment it is very much business as usual, although there is a lot of hard work taking place behind the scenes to make sure that we will be ready to respond if the circumstances change.

"To deliver the most effective response, it's important that everyone does their bit and takes responsibility for protecting and preparing themselves and their families."

There are simple steps that everyone can take to help prevent catching colds and flu based on good respiratory and hand hygiene.

Always use a tissue to catch your sneezes, throw away used tissues where germs can linger and regularly wash your hands.