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Remission refers to a disease becoming inactive for a period of time. The rate of remission of ulcerative colitis (after a first attack) is nearly 90%. Those individuals whose colitis is confined primarily to the left side of the large intestine have the best prognosis. Those individuals with extensive colitis, involving most or all of the large intestine, have a much poorer prognosis. Recent studies show that about 10% of these patients will have died by 10 years after diagnosis. About 20–25% of all ulcerative colitis patients will require colectomy. Unlike the case for patients with Crohn's disease, however, such radical surgery results in a cure of the disease.
— Rosalyn Carson-DeWitt, MD
