Yujia (Susanna) is a PhD student focusing on accelerometry and fatigability among older adults. Her research interests have been centered around understanding the health effect of greater fatigability and evaluating lifestyle interventions aiming to reduce fatigability among older adults. Her research has evolved from focusing on factors measured by traditional approaches, such as self-reported physical activity and self-reported health conditions, to factors measured with advanced and novel technologies, such as accelerometry. Her primary advisor is Dr. Nancy W. Glynn and she works as a Graduate Student Researcher (GSR) for and Dr. Nancy W. Glynn and Dr. Ann D. Cohen to manage accelerometry data collection for an Alzheimer’s Disease focused project. She also participates in the School’s governance through her serving on the Pitt Public Health Educational Policies and Curriculum Committee (EPCC) and the curriculum committee for the epidemiology department as a student representative. Her goal is to become an independent researcher in epidemiology to promote healthy aging. 

Select publications 

• Qiao, Y., van Londen, G. J., Brufsky, J. W., Poppenberg, J. T., Cohen, R. W., Boudreau, R. M., & Glynn, N. W. (2021). Perceived physical fatigability improves after an exercise intervention among breast cancer survivors: a randomized clinical trial. Breast Cancer, 1-8. 

• Renner, S. W., Qiao, Y., Gmelin, T., Santanasto, A. J., Boudreau, R. M., Walston, J. D., … & Glynn, N. W. (2021). Association of fatigue, inflammation,and physical activity on gait speed: the Long Life Family Study. Aging Clinical and Experimental Research, 1-8. 

• Graves, J. L., Qiao, Y. S., Moored, K. D., Boudreau, R. M., Venditti, E. M., Krafty, R. T., … & Glynn, N. W. (2021). Profiles of Accelerometry-Derived Physical Activity Are Related to Perceived Physical Fatigability in Older Adults. Sensors, 21(5), 1718. 

• Qiao, Y., Gmelin, T., Renner, S. W., Boudreau, R. M., Martin, S., Wojczynski, M. K., … & Glynn, N. W. (2020). Evaluation of the bidirectional relations of perceived physical fatigability and physical activity on slower gait speed. The Journals of Gerontology: Series A, 76(10), e237-e244. 

• Qiao, Y., Martinez-Amezcua, P., Wanigatunga, A. A., Urbanek, J. K., Simonsick, E. M., Ferrucci, L., & Schrack, J. A. (2019). Association Between Cardiovascular Risk and Perceived Fatigability in Mid-to-Late Life. Journal of the American Heart Association, 8(16), e013049.