5 Discussion
Agreeing with the studies of Vilagra (2003), our sample has presented an average score of postures analyzed by the RULA method of 5.5, with indications of fast changes. While the REBA method has presented an average score of 7.07 for the postures that have been analyzed, but the indications says only that the changes are necessary, without saying when.
Silva (2001) has found that none of the postures of the dental-surgeons analyzed by him was accepted. For this sample population, only one of the assumed postures during work activity was considered acceptable by the RULA method.
Both registers used in this study present similar categorizations of indication (or action), but they have proposals of evaluations different in their focus. Like that, some divergences could be observed.
The RULA method has presented a better sensibility to detect fast and urgent action levels, knowing that during the analysis, using both methods, the RULA one has detected a bigger proportion of postures in these categories than the proportion detected by the REBA method (picture 4). It can be explained by the fact that the dentists work, during a bigger part of the time, using the top superior part of the body, exactly the evaluation focus of the method RULA.