Fang Yu
· ProfessorArizona State University · Nursing and Healthcare Innovation
Active 2003–2025
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About
Fang Yu, PhD, RN, GNP-BC, FGSA, FAAN, is a Professor and the Edson Chair in Dementia Translational Nursing Science at Arizona State University Edson College of Nursing and Health Innovation. She is also the Director of the ASU Roybal Center for Older Adults Living Alone with Cognitive Decline. Her educational background includes a BS from Peking University Health Science Center, an MS as a Gerontological Nurse Practitioner, and a PhD in gerontological nursing from the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing. She completed a two-year John A. Hartford Claire M. Fagin Building Academic Geriatric Nursing Capacity Post-Doctoral Fellowship at Pennsylvania State University College of Nursing. Dr. Yu's academic career began at the University of Minnesota School of Nursing, where she joined as an Assistant Professor in 2006, was promoted to Associate Professor in 2012, and became a full Professor in 2018. She has held the Long-Term Care Professorship and served as Chair of the Adult and Gerontological Health Cooperative. She is a Fellow of the Gerontological Society of America and the American Academy of Nursing. Her research focuses on developing exercise and cognitive interventions to prevent and treat Alzheimer’s disease, with a particular emphasis on behavioral and lifestyle interventions such as aerobic exercise, cognitive training, and technology-enabled approaches like mHealth and telemedicine. Her work aims to improve function, wellbeing, and quality of life for older…
Research topics
- Physical therapy
- Internal medicine
- Medicine
- Physical medicine and rehabilitation
- Psychiatry
- Psychology
- Clinical psychology
- Environmental health
- Radiology
- Cardiology
Selected publications
Journal of sport and health science/Journal of Sport and Health Science · 2021 · 358 citations
Senior authorCorrespondingBACKGROUND: Exercise is a promising nonpharmacological therapy for cognitive dysfunction, but it is unclear which type of exercise is most effective. The objective of this study was to compare and rank the effectiveness of various exercise interventions on cognitive function in patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) or dementia and to examine the effects of exercise on the symptoms relevant to cognitive impairment. METHODS: We searched PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, Cochrane Central Regi…
Cognitive Effects of Aerobic Exercise in Alzheimer’s Disease: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial
Journal of Alzheimer s Disease · 2021 · 143 citations
1st authorCorrespondingBACKGROUND: Aerobic exercise has shown inconsistent cognitive effects in older adults with Alzheimer's disease (AD) dementia. OBJECTIVE: To examine the immediate and longitudinal effects of 6-month cycling on cognition in older adults with AD dementia. METHODS: This randomized controlled trial randomized 96 participants (64 to cycling and 32 to stretching for six months) and followed them for another six months. The intervention was supervised, moderate-intensity cycling for 20-50 minutes, 3 tim…
Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience · 2021 · 18 citations
1st authorCorrespondingwww.ClinicalTrials.gov, identifier: NCT01954550.
Health Science Reports · 2025-01-01 · 7 citations
articleOpen accessSenior authorBackground: The number of individuals living alone with dementia is increasing throughout the world, and they have unique needs that are poorly understood. The aim of this integrative review was to understand the characteristics, needs, and perspectives of individuals living alone with dementia as well as the available community resources to guide future research and clinical practice. Methods: Electronic (PubMed, CINAHL, and PsycINFO) and manual searches were utilized to identify articles using…
The Gerontologist · 2025-06-12 · 7 citations
articleThe National Institute of Health (NIH) Stage Model provides a systematic framework for advancing behavioral intervention science. It uniquely bridges basic research with the development and dissemination of interventions that are scientifically rigorous and scalable. This manuscript examines the evolution and key features of the NIH Stage Model, its incorporation of iterative and mechanism-focused methodologies, and its impact on behavioral science, particularly in aging research. We provide exa…
Recent grants
NIH · $4.4M · 2021–2024
NIH · $21.0M · 2010
Aerobic Exercise in Alzheimer's Disease Cognition and Hippocampal Volume Effects
NIH · $2.5M · 2020–2021
Frequent coauthors
- 36 shared
Dereck Salisbury
University of Minnesota
- 25 shared
Hilkka Soininen
University of Eastern Finland
- 25 shared
Maria Pikkarainen
University of Eastern Finland
- 25 shared
Kaloyan Stoychev
Sofia University "St. Kliment Ohridski"
- 25 shared
Antonino Maria Cotroneo
Ospedale Maria Vittoria
- 25 shared
P. Chumpalova
Medical University Pleven
- 25 shared
M. Stoimenova-Popova
Medical University Pleven
- 25 shared
Anne M. Remes
University of Helsinki
Education
B.S., Nursing
Peking University Health Science Center
M.S., Gerontological Nurse Practitioner
University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing
Ph.D., Gerontology Nurse
University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing
Other, John A. Hartford Foundation Claire M. Fagin Building Academic Excellence in Geriatric Nursing Capacity (BAGNC) Postdoctoral Fellowship
The Pennsylvania State University School of Nursing & Center for Healthy Aging
Awards & honors
- TRUST Award in Health and Well–Being, Women's Health Leaders…
- Jeannine Rivet National Leadership Award Finalist, American…
- The Edmond J. Safra Visiting Nurse Faculty, The Parkinson’s…
- Fellow, American Academy of Nursing, Jul 2, 2015
- Fellow, The Gerontological Society of America, May 29, 2015
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