BEDFORD, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Spire Corporation (Nasdaq: SPIR) today announced that it has received a two-year, $870,000 Phase II Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant from the National Institutes of Heath, National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD) to develop a high power fiber laser capable of performing myringotomy and middle-ear surgery without the need for anesthesia. The grant has been funded for $438,000 for the first year and the second year of funding is subject to the availability of funds and the satisfactory progress of the project. Myringotomy is a common procedure, typically performed in children under the age of five, whereby the tympanic membrane (eardrum) is punctured to drain fluid and reduce the risk of ear infection. Approximately one million children undergo this procedure annually in the United States.
