Total Knee Replacement

First, having both knees done at the same time takes a lot of courage.  You've got a very strong lady there!!!  I had one done.  Two at the same time?  Not even a consideration...  She's a keeper...

Having both knees done at the same time literally leaves the patient without a leg to stand on...not kidding.  This is a very brutal surgery that has a usual recovery time of a full year...for one knee.  No idea what the recovery time is for a true bilateral.  Anyway, during that time, you wife will walk...absolutely required for a full recovery.  In doing so, she will encounter pain...especially so early in her journey.

When we walk and experience pain, we tend to change our gait to avoid that pain.  This can cause a whole host of problems.  A lot of people end up with misaligned hips and pelvis resulting in pain shooting down their leg...sciatica.  Easily addressed by a chiropractor.  In almost all of us, we change which muscles we use to walk since our quads, glutes and core are all atrophied and eventually have to be rebuilt...takes months.  This results in other muscle groups picking up the slack...like calf, ankle and foot which, under this strain, develop pain since they were not designed to do the work of the knee and its supporting musculature.

There is a brace called an Ankle Foot Orthosis (AFO) which is intended to support a weak ankle and foot (picture example).  There are OTC ones but the best are custom casted and have very special hinge hardware.  My wife had brain aneurysm surgery and two TIA strokes that left specific nerves in her right calf dead.  This causes her foot to drop and turn inward...permanent condition.  Her AFO keeps her foot in the absolute proper position.

Not saying that you need a custom brace but you may consider something to help keep her ankle supported until she can rebuild all the necessary muscles to support the knee.  Talk to your doc; he/she can suggest the best way of alleviating this pain.  You can also see a foot doc...for us, he was the one that diagnosed my wife's problem and wrote the RX for her AFO.  (PS: She got it in purple and decorated it with 60's art...hey, if you gotta wear it, you gotta OWN it!!!)  Maybe a simple OTC ankle brace will do...maybe an AFO would be appropriate.  Let the doc guide you.  But it does sound like she needs something to keep her ankle strong and in place.

I had the same experience--about 3-4 weeks after surgery..It began without any incident and lasted 3-4 days and then went away as quickly as it came?? I am not saying that what you are experiencing is the same as mine--but if yours lingers and is causing her more debilitation probably best to consult her ortho Dr. or at least her physical therapist..Good Luck..