The number of Chinese with bone-wasting osteoporosis has tripled in the past 30 years, say experts.

The cost of treating osteoporosis and diseases caused by osteoporosis added up to at least 15 billion yuan (1.9 billion U.S. dollars) each year, according to a recent seminar on the disease held in Beijing.

Osteoporosis is a decrease in bone mass and density that increases the risk of fractures and commonly affects women after the menopause.

About 75 percent of menopausal women have received no treatment and more than half only took calcium supplements, experts told the seminar.

"Many patients stop taking their medicine halfway during the treatment or after the symptoms begin to disappear after a year," said Huang Gongyi, director of the orthopedics department of the Beijing Hospital under the Ministry of Health.

It usually took at least 18 months to treat the disease properly.

Source: Xinhua