ONCORD, N.H. - Bill Bradley fainted two years ago when he suffered an abnormal heartbeat while exercising, and as president he would probably invoke the 25th amendment to transfer power temporarily to his vice president if he fainted again, his spokesman said last night.
Bradley has been diagnosed as having atrial fibrillation, an irregular beat of the heart's upper chambers. The condition is common, affecting at least 2 million Americans, and is not life-threatening.
His doctors said he is in excellent health and fully capable of carrying out the duties of president, said Bradley's spokesman, Eric Hauser.
But the disclosure that Bradley's heart condition caused him to faint while he was exercising on a StairMaster in Denver in 1998 is yet another in a series of surprise disclosures about his health that have complicated his campaign for the White House.
''I just got my heartbeat way too high and passed out,'' Bradley told the New York Times in an interview with a medical writer published in today's editions.
''The last thing I remember is I looked at my watch and it said 2:12. The next thing I remember was waking up on the floor,'' he said.
Bradley granted the Times full access to his medical records and his doctors. Bradley also discussed his fainting episode and the cardioversion, or electric shock treatment, he has received three times to restore his normal rhythm.
''They give you anesthesia, you kind of drift, and then when you wake up, they say you are back in rhythm,'' Bradley said. ''When you wake up, you are completely alert, you can function.''
Bradley told the Times that, while he had not seriously considered the question, invoking the 25th Amendment, briefly giving his vice president executive powers, might be ''a reasonable way to go'' if he needed such treatment as president.
On Thursday, Bradley disclosed that he had experienced an erratic heart rhythm last Sunday or Monday. It lasted two hours, ''and it passed'' without need for medical attention, he said..
Bradley earlier acknowledged that he had experienced four episodes of abnormal rhythms since an episode in December that required cardiovesion. None of those four required medical care.
He said last week that he believes he had no obligation to discuss his erratic heart rhythms if they do not require medical care. But he told the Times that he regretted not disclosing all the information about his heart conditon earlier.
Hauser said the purpose of laying out the story before Tuesday's New Hampshire primary was to dispel questions about Bradley's ability to serve as president.
''All his doctors say he is excellent health,'' Hauser said. ''This is further affirmation that he is in great shape.''
During a campaign stop in Berlin yesterday, Bradley appeared fit as he tossed a football with Senator Bob Kerrey of Nebraska and made an acrobatic, running catch.
