Abstract: An image processing device includes: an interest area detector that detects interest areas included in a time-series image group captured in time series; a calculation processing unit that calculates feature amounts indicative of features of the interest areas; an area classification unit that classifies the interest areas into area groups, based on the feature amounts of the interest areas and time-series positions of time-series images including the interest areas; a group feature amount calculation unit that calculates a group feature amount indicative of a feature of each of the area groups; an area selection unit that selects one or more representative areas of the interest areas belonging to the area groups, from among the area groups; and a representative image output unit that outputs one or more representative images including the representative areas in the time-series image group.

Abstract: A system and method for segmenting cardiac images and, in particular, segmenting the left ventricle of the heart using a contour propagation model that integrates visual information and anatomical constraints. The visual information comprises a gradient vector flow-based boundary component and a region component that separates the cardiac contours/regions according to their global intensity properties that reflect the different tissue properties. The anatomical constraints couple the propagation of cardiac contours according to their relative distance. The propagation model comprises a weighted integration of a boundary segmentation model, a region model and coupling function.