Therefore, this review focuses on methods for the synthesis of sultams and sultones that involve transformations of nitriles, wherein the cyano group could either directly react in the formation of a cyclic sulfonamide or act as an activating group. Most chemical transformations of nitriles in the synthesis of sultams and sultones rely on inter-and intramolecular reactions of sulfonamides with an additional electrophilic center, i.e. carbonyl (aldehydes, ketones, esters), halide, sulfonate groups, oxirane, or other nitrile fragment. A well-studied transformation in this context is the CSIC reaction (Carbanion-mediated Sulfonate (Sulfonamide) Intramolecular Cyclization), when the nitrile carbon atom becomes a part of the heterocyclic skeleton via the intramolecular Thorpe condensation. Various examples also involve cyclization via Michael addition, as well as cycloaddition reactions, that are widely utilized for constructing fused sultams.