About us

The POSSUM database is the result of more than 30 years of contributions from a team based at the Victorian Clinical Genetics Service (VCGS) and the Murdoch Children's Research Institute (MCRI) in Melbourne, Australia.

POSSUMweb is a dysmorphology database:

a web browser software tool that can help with diagnosis of syndromes in patients
helpful teaching tool.

Provides a flexible search facility, saves time and effort in researching and cross-referencing syndrome information.

The POSSUM database includes information on over 5000 syndromes, including multiple malformations, chromosomal abnormalities, skeletal dysplasias, metabolic disorders, linked to over 30,000 images including photos, Xrays, scans, diagrams, and histology.

Trait selection searches the database resulting in a target list of possible diagnoses.

Syndrome commentaries and images where available provide detailed information about key clinical attributes, differential diagnoses, imaging and genetics.

The database is updated continuously.

Latest Version

Our latest version can be accessed from PCs and Macs, iPads and androids
You can perform 'free text' searching - particularly useful when seeking rare traits or specific genes
References link to PubMed
Direct links to (and from) OMIM, and to 'free PMC' articles