護中心的護理人員目前常利用APACHE II評分系統，評估病患疾病嚴重程度及其可能的預後。而近來的研究也指出，病患疾病嚴重程度與其體內的細胞激素如，腫瘤壞死因子-α(tumor necrosis factor-α,TNF-α)及白血球間質(inter-Leukin,IL)等含量有關。因此，本文除了敘述APACHEII的評估內容及方法外，也特別介紹TNF-α及IL在疾病嚴重度評估上，所進行的研究，及其與AFACHE II評分系統的相關性。除此之外，本文也對醫護人員在利用APACHE II評分系統時，提出其運用上的限制與注意事項。希望本文除可增加護理人員對疾病嚴重度評估的知識外，同時可做為實際評估時之參考。

　　　　　APACHE II (acute physiology and chronic health evaluation II) scoring system is used as an evaluation tool for the nursing staff to assess the disease severity and to predict the mortality of patients in the intensive care unit (ICU). Therefore, in this review article we introduced the contents and methods into the APACHE II scoring system. Additionally, recent research in tumor necrosis factor-α and interleukin were also introduced. These two substances are considered to have positive correlation with the patient's APACHE II score, and may play the predictors for disease severity. Finally, some suggestions and limitations on the using of the APACHE II scoring system were proposed as a reference especially for the ICU nurses on the assessment of patients' severity of disease.