PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image processing apparatus improving work efficiency and diagnostic accuracy in diagnosing a valvular disease by a doctor or a medical technologist.SOLUTION: A storage section 11 stores a 3D image of a cardiac region of a subject. A cross section setting section 13 sets a cross section in a vascular region included in the cardiac region. A contour extracting section 15 extracts the contour of the vascular region from the vascular region in the cross section by image processing. An evaluation circle generating section 17 generates a schematic valve image for schematically expressing the shape of a cardiac valve on the basis of the shape of the contour. A valve pixel specifying section 19 searches in a defined direction valve pixels for the cardiac valve included in the 3D image for each of the pixels forming the schematic valve image, and specifies whether the valve pixels are present. A colored evaluation circle generating section 21 generates a color image for expressing with colors the opening/closing of the cardiac valve on the basis of the schematic valve image and information as to whether the valve pixels are present or not.
